Forman to leave NAA to head Newsday/Nynex shopping service venture p. 13

By: Dorothy Giobbe

Newspaper Association of America does not
plan to fill his post as chief operating officer sp.

LEN FORMAN WILL leave his position as chief operating officer of the Newspaper Association of America in the first quarter of next year to head an interactive shopping service joint venture between Nynex and Newsday.
Forman will become president and CEO of the planned service which will allow consumers and businesses to search Nynex's business directory listings and Newsday's advertising listings with the help of a personal shopping assistant.
The two companies signed a letter of intent to form the joint venture in May.
The service will first be available over the telephone and later may be expanded to other technologies, including interactive television, according to a joint statement by the two partner companies. It will first be offered in down-state New York, and future plans call for expansion to other parts of the state.
There will be no successor to Forman's NAA job, according to spokeswoman Nancy Jones.
Forman joined the Newspaper Advertising Bureau as executive vice president in 1989 and was later named president. He became COO of the NAA when the Ad Bureau was merged with that organization in 1992.
"It was always envisioned that in the post-merger years, at some point, Len would leave and the position would not be filled," Jones said.
Forman said "it was no secret" that he would eventually move on after the merger.
"Five-and-a-half years is a long time to be in a situation that is a constant state of turmoil," he said in reference to the moves that were made to come up with a unified lobbying organization for the newspaper industry.
"The NAA is pretty strong now, and most of the problems are behind it . . . . The industry has come to terms with what it wanted the NAA to be, and the visioning process this summer helped to clarify that."
Forman said the Nynex/Newsday joint venture team initially will focus on product design and concept, and he expressed excitement about the project.
"The great part about this is that I love the newspaper business, and I'm still in it, on the leading edge," he said.
Cathleen Black, president and CEO of the NAA, said, "Len was a terrific asset to the NAA during and post-merger. We knew that he would relocate eventually and it's perfect timing. NAA membership is up and we're launching the new council structure.
"Len loves strategy and the impact of technology on future businesses and this is a very nice match for his skills, Black said.
"We wish him the best of luck," she added."