Si Newhouse denies Wintour rumour

Si Newhouse, the owner of the publishing empire Conde Naste, issued an immediate rebuttal to rumours circulating yesterday - and reported here - that he is about to ditch Anna Wintour (pictured), the editor-in-chief of American Vogue, and replace her with French Vogue editor, Carine Roitfeld.

"This is the silliest rumour I ever heard," he told the Wall Street Journal. That may well be true, but according to the First Post's well-placed Manhattan media source Wintour does indeed plan to step down from fashion's top job on or around her 60th birthday, which falls next November 3. And, contrary to the speculation, her successor is more likely to be Cindy Leive, editor of Conde Naste's Glamour magazine.

Leive, who at 40 is about the same age Wintour was when she took over the job, is considered a perfect fit, not only because of her editorial flair, but also because she is said to be good at the commercial side of operations. Glamour is published in half a dozen countries, including the UK and Germany, and is a big earner for the publishing group.

And Leive, an elegant figure who was schooled at the smart, private Liberal arts estabishment, Swarthmore College, is certainly a high-flier. Last year she was named as one of the most poweful women under 40 in New York by Gotham magazine. She could be a lot more powerful one day soon.