Breaking news at the 2001 CEDIA Expo, held this past weekend in Indianapolis, IN, was that Harry Pearson, founder and editor of bimonthly high-end audio magazine The Absolute Sound, has apparently been moved to one side. According to TAS publisher Mark Fisher, with whom I spoke briefly Sunday morning on the Show floor, the day-to-day editing of the magazine will become the responsibility of erstwhile Stereophile consulting technical editor Robert Harley.

Harley is already editor of Absolute Multimedia's home-theater title The Perfect Vision, which is also published bimonthly, alternating with TAS, and he will continue in that role, I understood from my conversation with Fisher.

According to Fisher, this move is definitely not a demotion for Pearson, who has been at the editorial helm of TAS since 1973, but is instead a recognition of the Austin, TX-based company's need to have someone taking care of the day-to-day business of editing the magazine. Harry Pearson will take on the new role of "Chairman, editorial strategy board," and will continue contributing his popular "HP's Workshop" column to The Abso!ute Sound, as well as other writings on audio, music, and cinema.