New magazines

It takes a brave soul today to launch new magazines and I've come across two in the just the last little while.

Stepping into the void left by the demise of Asiaweek and the Far Eastern Economic Review (at least as a weekly) is Asia Weekly. We understand from a notice at the Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents' Club that the new magazine is currently coming out every two weeks but expects to respect its name and go weekly from April. Highly respected China author Jasper Becker is, I gather, the man behind it.

I have a small connection with Jasper (which he probably does not recall). Back in June 1985, we both flew out to Hong Kong on the same British Caledonian Airways flight in adjacent seats to start careers in Asia as journalists. He was writing for the Journal of Commerce, I for Seatrade. He has gone to an infinitely more distinguished writing career and I wish him well with his involvement in the new magazine. Just don't sell it to an American publisher. That seems to be the kiss of death for English language news weeklies in Asia.

Given the current financial flavour of the month, a more obvious choice for a new launch is Private Equity International Asia. PEI Asia is an offshoot of a London-based of the same name (minus the "Asia" of course). We wish it well. We're not sure, though, about going for a print publication. Dan Schwartz's Asia Venture Capital Journal, now owned by Incisive Media, went e-only ages ago and it seems to work well for them. Good luck anyway!