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Recent Press Releases (U.S. and international) for magazine issues and staff changes may be found below. Please note that for many issues there exists only a highlights sheet, while for others there may also be a full press release. The cover of FORTUNE's current issue is pictured at right. Please contact the appropriate communications staff member with any questions.
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FORTUNE EXCLUSIVE: MARTHA STEWART "I CANNOT BE DESTROYED."
Story of how the unsinkable Ms. Stewart staged her comeback—transforming her board, remaking public opinion, and invading prime time. New York, October 31, 2005—In an exclusive story, FORTUNE tells the inside story of Martha Stewart's comeback after her time in prison. Based on a year's reporting and multiple interviews with Stewart, editor-at-large Patricia Sellers tells how Stewart plotted the comeback with her signature painstaking precision—practically from the day she was convicted. Her return, says Sellers, may be the strongest evidence yet of her strategic sense and business acumen. "Stewart's operatic fall and thunderous return speak volumes about the resiliency of this woman who was America's first self-made billionaire." Still, there are risks for Stewart: She is a convicted felon, and an SEC insider trading investigation is still pending. With her history of going from darling to devil to darling in the public eye, the mood could turn against her once more. "Has the remaking of Martha—New! Improved! Free!—been too fast, too soon?" The story appears in the November 14 issue of FORTUNE, available on newsstands November 7 and on www.fortune.com on October 31. Below are some nuggets from the story: • Stewart, when she was offered a starring role in The Apprentice: "I thought I was replacing The Donald. It was even discussed that I would be firing The Donald on the first show." • On the "de-Martha-izing" of the magazine when she was in prison: "It was all about placating the lawyers and Wall Street and advertisers," says Stewart, who eventually pushed CEO Sharon Patrick out and installed a new regime. "When I resigned and Sharon took over, it was clear that the job was way too much for one person. She said she could handle it. She just wasn't handling it." Patrick now says: "A COO couldn't solve MSLO's biggest problems—loss of ad revenue and uncertainty." • On her new CEO: "I'm really happy with Susan Lyne as my CEO, okay? What I don't want to be told is that I can't be a corporate officer." • Stewart insists she knew all along what she had to do: serve the [prison] time, get it over with, so she and her company could move on. "My life is my business," says Stewart. "My business is my life. I've said that a thousand times. I had to do it because I knew it would change things—jigger a change—in the company." • At Alderson, an all-female facility that houses about 1,000 prisoners, "I got relaxed," Stewart confides. "I felt calmer. I felt better. My stress level, I'm sure, was cut in half." • On her deal for Martha Stewart branded KB homes: "You get unbelievable quality and space for the price. My garage costs more than a 2,500-square-foot home." • Stewart tells FORTUNE she plans to sell her famous Connecticut home, Turkey Hill. "I hardly go there anymore. I don't miss it."
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