Newsweek Scoops Time on the News of Its Own Merger

NEW YORK — Newsweek magazine scooped its chief rival, Time, on one of the biggest business deals of the year: the $18-billion merger between Time Inc. and Warner Communications Inc.

Newsweek included a two-page story on the proposed deal in its March 13 issue, but this week’s Time is silent on the merger that was announced hours before the magazines went to press Saturday night.

“We never intended to cover the merger in the news pages,” Time spokesman Louis J. Slovinsky said. He said Time Inc. wanted to include the merger announcement in the same issues of its other weekly magazines, People and Sports Illustrated. Because People goes to press Thursday, Time opted to wait a week, he said.

“I think that’s wonderful,” said Richard M. Smith, Newsweek’s editor-in-chief. “Needless to say, I was curious to see how Time was going to cover this.”