Rodney Reynolds said his RJR Communications and RJR Media Group have acquired American Legacy magazine and related brand products from Forbes Inc., and have moved its offices to 7 W. Broad St. in Mount Vernon. Terms were not disclosed. American Legacy Magazine, published quarterly and distributed nationally through black churches and educational and cultural organizations, was a joint venture between RJR Communications and American Heritage Inc., an affiliate of Forbes. Other American Legacy brands include American Legacy Woman; American Legacy Healthcare Advantage; American Legacy, Jr. and American Legacy TV. American Legacy has a staff of 11.

The Reader’s Digest Association Inc. hopes to expand its readership base through a wide-ranging multimedia partnership with Rick Warren, one of the nation’s best known Christian ministers and writers.

In the ambitious collaboration announced yesterday, the Chappaqua-based publisher and Warren said they will jointly produce products aimed at “people who are seeking their purpose in life and wish to interact with others on their spiritual journeys.”

The venture will include a quarterly magazine, “The Purpose Driven Connection,” for which Warren will serve as editor-in-chief.

Other products will include DVDs, workbooks, Internet-based discussion guides and a Christian social networking website.

For Reader’s Digest, the partnership fits with management’s strategy to develop new revenue streams and diversify the company. Profitability suffered before a private-equity buyout of Reader’s Digest nearly two years ago. In addition, the flagship Reader’s Digest, while still the world’s largest magazine, has struggled to overcome a reputation as a product that appealed more to an aging demographic than younger readers.

“This is one of our company’s most important and far-reaching ventures ever,” said Alyce Alston, president of the Reader’s Digest Home & Garden and Health & Wellness affinities. “Together we will create a category-busting multimedia suite that will help millions of people in their daily lives, including those who already follow the Purpose Driven principles as well as seekers everywhere looking for greater fulfillment.”

Warren has a big national following as the founder of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., a congregation with more than with 100,000 members. He also is a best-selling author whose book “The Purpose Driven Life” has sold more than 30 million copies since its debut in 2002 and has been translated into nearly 100 languages.

Warren even was an influential figure in the presidential campaign when he hosted a question-and-answer session with candidates John McCain and Barack Obama.

The magazine is expected to begin publishing in early 2009.

“The magazine will be consistent with our highest editorial standards,” said Frank Lalli, vice president of international editions and magazine development at Reader’s Digest. “In the best traditions of RDA, we are commissioning extraordinary photographers, illustrators and writers to travel the world and capture real-life stories that will change how readers think and inspire them to take action to improve society.”

The partnership also will promote Saddleback Church’s Peace Plan that seeks to mobilize Christians to combat global problems, including spiritual emptiness, corrupt leadership, extreme poverty, pandemic diseases and illiteracy. “We are excited about this new partnership and its unprecedented potential for international impact,” Warren said in a written statement. “The Purpose Driven Connection represents more than simply integrated multimedia resources; it will become a platform for a movement of people to change the world.”

The Reader’s Digest Association Inc. announced a five-year agreement under which the Chappaqua-based publisher will contribute 50,000 articles to HowStuffWorks.com, a Web site that includes information on a wide variety of topics.

HowStuffWorks.com will be the exclusive English-language online publisher of Reader’s Digest articles in categories that include home and garden, science and nature and lifestyle. This material has only been available in print until the agreement.

Reader’s Digest said that it hopes that the association with HowStuffWorks.com, which draws about 15 million users each month, will help attract new advertisers.

“RDA is committed to aggressively growing in the digital space including seeking new ways to leverage our content, and this partnership allows us to extend our content by introducing it to a new audience online,” Mary Berner, president and chief executive officer of Reader’s Digest, said in a written statement.

DailyLit, a digital publisher based in Mamaroneck, said that it will offer several books from Oxford University Press through its Web site or e-mail.

The venture is the result of an agreement between DailyLit and Oxford University Press announced today.

Titles originally published by Oxford University Press that are now available on DailyLit.com include “Weird and Wonderful Words” by Erin McKean and “What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam” by John L. Esposito. Books are available for as little as $4.95.

“It’s great to have another well-respected publisher on board, adding to our current list of about 30 publishers,” Susan Danziger, chief executive officer of DailyLit, said in a written statement.

DailyLit said that its site features more than 1,000 classic and contemporary books available for free or for a small fee.

Plans by The New York Times to close its City & Suburban delivery service by January is expected to include an operation in New Rochelle. The newspaper said it would eliminate the equivalent of 550 jobs when it closes the wholesale distribution service. The division, formed in 1992, handles delivery of the Times and other publications in the metropolitan area. The business is no longer economical, the Times said in a statement. A spokeswoman for the company would not say how many of the positions are based at the New Rochelle site on Nardozzi Place. Spokesman for the Newspaper and Mail Deliverers Union did not return calls for comment.

David Wind of Chestnut Ridge said his 33rd novel, a mystery entitled “Angels in Mourning,” will be released on Oct. 1. The publisher is BookSurge, the self-publish subsidiary of Amazon.com.

The Journal News cut 12 jobs today citing further erosion in ad revenue from retail, housing, automotive and employment sectors of the economy.

The cuts were part of a larger plan by the newspaper’s parent company, Gannett Co. Inc., to eliminate 1,000 jobs across the company’s 84 news properties in its Community Publishing division, which includes The Journal News and LoHud.com.

The number of positions eliminated at each newspaper was determined locally, McLean, Va.-based Gannett said.