PARIS, France – After two decades as the best-selling publication for homosexuals in France, the debt-ridden magazine Tetu is being liquidated, it said Wednesday.
The magazine, declared bankrupt four months ago, failed to lure advertisers and investors to keep it afloat. It even failed to draw “credible and serious” buyers, managing editor Yannick Barbe told AFP.
He said the magazine suffered from the divisive debate in French society over gay marriage and adoption — signed into law in 2013 after months of controversy and street protests.
“These issues made advertisers and potential investors nervous,” he said.
“We are forced to file for liquidation because there is no money coming in,” he said, adding that staff still hoped a buyer would emerge before the liquidation hearing on July 23.
As it stands, the current July-August edition, featuring popstar Mika on its cover, will be the last published by Tetu (the title translates as ‘stubborn’).
Since its creation by business tycoon Pierre Berge — the longtime lover of fashion guru Yves Saint Laurent — the magazine has operated in the red.
In 2013 it was sold for a symbolic one euro ($1.1) to French publisher Jean-Jacques Augier.
Its losses decreased from two million euros that year to an estimated 600,000 euros in 2015, but the improvement was not enough to keep the publication afloat.
Barbe said circulation has plummeted by 12.5 percent since 2010.
Employees of the magazine launched an appeal for investors on their website and using the hashtag #SaveMyTetu.