Atoosa Rubenstein
Encyclopedia
Atoosa Rubenstein was the editor-in-chief of Seventeen
magazine. She was also the founding editor of CosmoGIRL!. She is currently the founder of Big Momma Productions, Inc. and Atoosa.com.
, New York
when she was three. They later relocated to Malverne
, Long Island
.
As an undergraduate student at Barnard College
, Rubenstein became a public relations
intern
at Lang Communications, the company that bought Sassy
magazine. Though she loved the magazine industry, she had to work at Carvel and retail stores to pay her bills. Rubenstein had to drop out of her sorority and take night classes to take part in her second internship, which led to a position in the editorial department of American Health
magazine. She was a member of the Alpha Chi Omega
Sorority at Barnard College.
Columbia University
honored Rubenstein in 2004 by naming her one of the top 250 alumni through the ages. She was also recognized by the Girl Scout Council of Greater New York as a Woman of Distinction. Rubenstein has been featured in Crain's New York Business “40 Under 40” and Folios “30 Under 30.” In addition to her professional work, she is a member of The Candie’s Foundation Board of Directors, which helps educate young people about the consequences of teen pregnancy.
Rubenstein currently lives in Manhattan with her husband of 12 years, Ari Rubenstein.
Ari is the founder and Managing Partner of Global Trading Systems LLC, a stock, commodity and foreign currency trading company. Her husband is related to famed economics professor Leslie Rubenstein.
In May 2003, Hearst Magazines bought Seventeen magazine and gave Rubenstein the position of editor-in-chief. Rubenstein quickly went on to reverse a five-year decline in Seventeen’s newsstand sales and delivered total newsstand growth of 23% by the end of 2005.
In the fall of 2005, a series that Rubenstein conceived titled Miss Seventeen
, debuted on MTV
. The series featured seventeen girls competing for the honor of being Miss Seventeen – a life-changing award that included a college scholarship, an internship at Seventeen, and a cover and spread for the iconic publication. Rubenstein was the Creator and an Executive Producer on the series.
She has also appeared in numerous episodes of the reality show series, America's Next Top Model Season 2. (4 episodes, 2006)
On 7 November 2006, she announced that she would be leaving the magazine to launch her own teen-centered Web business, write a book and start a consulting firm specializing in the youth market. Her replacement is Ann Shoket
.
In December 2006 Rubenstein started Big Momma Productions, Inc. after a thirteen-year career with Hearst Magazines.
On 15 August 2008, Rubenstein welcomed a baby girl, Angelika McQueen, who weighed 7 lbs and 15 oz.
Seventeen (magazine)
Seventeen is an American magazine for teenagers. It was first published in September 1944 by Walter Annenberg's Triangle Publications. News Corporation bought Triangle in 1988, and sold Seventeen to K-III Communications in 1991. Primedia sold the magazine to Hearst in 2003. It is still in the...
magazine. She was also the founding editor of CosmoGIRL!. She is currently the founder of Big Momma Productions, Inc. and Atoosa.com.
Background
Her father, Mansoor Behnegar, a colonel in the Iranian air force, moved the family to QueensQueens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
when she was three. They later relocated to Malverne
Malverne, New York
Malverne is a village in the town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 8,514 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all of it land.-History:...
, Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
.
As an undergraduate student at Barnard College
Barnard College
Barnard College is a private women's liberal arts college and a member of the Seven Sisters. Founded in 1889, Barnard has been affiliated with Columbia University since 1900. The campus stretches along Broadway between 116th and 120th Streets in the Morningside Heights neighborhood in the borough...
, Rubenstein became a public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
intern
Intern
Internship is a system of onthejob training for white-collar jobs, similar to an apprenticeship. Interns are usually college or university students, but they can also be high school students or post graduate adults seeking skills for a new career. They may also be as young as middle school or in...
at Lang Communications, the company that bought Sassy
Sassy Magazine
Sassy magazine is a defunct teen magazine, aimed at teenage female fans of alternative and indie rock music. It was founded in March 1988 by an Australian feminist, Sandra Yates, CEO of Matilda Publications, who based it on the teen magazine Dolly, which is still in publication in...
magazine. Though she loved the magazine industry, she had to work at Carvel and retail stores to pay her bills. Rubenstein had to drop out of her sorority and take night classes to take part in her second internship, which led to a position in the editorial department of American Health
American Health (magazine)
American Health was an American magazine devoted to health, and has been called "one of the fastest-growing magazines of the 1980s".American Health received the General Excellence Award from the American Society of Magazine Editors in 1985, and was a finalist in that category in 1984, as well as...
magazine. She was a member of the Alpha Chi Omega
Alpha Chi Omega
Alpha Chi Omega is a women's fraternity founded on October 15, 1885. Currently, there are 135 chapters of Alpha Chi Omega at colleges and universities across the United States and more than 200,000 lifetime members...
Sorority at Barnard College.
Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
honored Rubenstein in 2004 by naming her one of the top 250 alumni through the ages. She was also recognized by the Girl Scout Council of Greater New York as a Woman of Distinction. Rubenstein has been featured in Crain's New York Business “40 Under 40” and Folios “30 Under 30.” In addition to her professional work, she is a member of The Candie’s Foundation Board of Directors, which helps educate young people about the consequences of teen pregnancy.
Rubenstein currently lives in Manhattan with her husband of 12 years, Ari Rubenstein.
Ari is the founder and Managing Partner of Global Trading Systems LLC, a stock, commodity and foreign currency trading company. Her husband is related to famed economics professor Leslie Rubenstein.
Media
In 1993 Rubenstein became a fashion assistant at Cosmopolitan and five years later was made the senior fashion editor. This led to Hearst Magazines president Cathleen Black asking Rubenstein to come up with a concept for a new magazine. Forty-eight hours later Rubenstein presented the idea of CosmoGIRL! and was offered the position of editor-in-chief. This made her the youngest editor-in-chief in Hearst Magazine's 100 year history. Rubenstein went on to make CosmoGIRL! a success with a circulation of 1.25 million readers.In May 2003, Hearst Magazines bought Seventeen magazine and gave Rubenstein the position of editor-in-chief. Rubenstein quickly went on to reverse a five-year decline in Seventeen’s newsstand sales and delivered total newsstand growth of 23% by the end of 2005.
In the fall of 2005, a series that Rubenstein conceived titled Miss Seventeen
Miss Seventeen
Miss Seventeen is a reality television show on MTV that aired from October 17, 2005 to December 19, 2005. The show consisted of 17 young women competing for an internship at and a college scholarship. Atoosa Rubenstein was the main judge, she was the youngest editor-in-chief ever to run...
, debuted on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
. The series featured seventeen girls competing for the honor of being Miss Seventeen – a life-changing award that included a college scholarship, an internship at Seventeen, and a cover and spread for the iconic publication. Rubenstein was the Creator and an Executive Producer on the series.
She has also appeared in numerous episodes of the reality show series, America's Next Top Model Season 2. (4 episodes, 2006)
On 7 November 2006, she announced that she would be leaving the magazine to launch her own teen-centered Web business, write a book and start a consulting firm specializing in the youth market. Her replacement is Ann Shoket
Ann Shoket
Ann Shoket is an American magazine writer and editor, and the current editor-in-chief of Seventeen magazine.-Education:Shoket graduated in 1990 from Pennsbury High School in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania. She received her B.A...
.
In December 2006 Rubenstein started Big Momma Productions, Inc. after a thirteen-year career with Hearst Magazines.
On 15 August 2008, Rubenstein welcomed a baby girl, Angelika McQueen, who weighed 7 lbs and 15 oz.