Adweek editor Alison Fahey was named yesterday to the top spot of publisher/editorial director at the Nielsen Business Media brand, which doesn't so much publish "weekly" as "whenever's convenient." She's been editor there for 10 years and now, if Nielsen's move to slash 4,000 jobs is any indication, her chief role in the coming weeks will be to finger who's getting the ax. Happy hunting!

Nielsen Business Media, publisher of Adweek, Brandweek, Mediaweek, and The Hollywood Reporter, is laying off an indeterminate number of editorial staffers; it's not clear how much bloodshed there will be. (Not that it stopped Nielsen from

But expect more. While Nielsen may be a publisher facing the same ad dollar restraints as anybody else in the print realm, it's long been rumored they've been looking to sell NBM, even though they deny it. And what's the one thing a seller will do to make its properties look more attractive to a potential buyer? Cut costs across the line to boost margins.