July 13, 1998

The Russian Government said it had reached agreement with the International Monetary Fund on $11 billion in new loans to help stabilize its financial markets.

Tina Brown explains her decision to leave The New Yorker to run and partly own new magazine and other projects backed by Harvey Weinstein of Miramax film production company; says she is intrigued at chance to 'put down the editorial DNA' of new magazine; says she is not deterred by skepticism of some journalists about such up-front effort to tie fact-based craft of magazine nonfiction to fantasy-based world of film; says she would never compromise journalistic integrity of magazine for end game with Hollywood; Weinstein says he is unfazed by business executives' predictions of five years of losses before magazine could be profitable; Brown is known to be rankled by her failure to gain any authority over business side at New Yorker, particularly when her name was juxtaposed with reports of magazine's financial losses; photos (M)

Article describes scene on East 111th Street in upper Manhattan at 30th annual 111th Street Old Timers' Stickball Game; photo (M)

Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto resigns after voters rebuke Japan's governing party in parliamentary elections; several senior officials in Liberal Democratic Party are jockeying to succeed Hashimoto, and decision is expected soon, to reassure unsettled financial markets throughout Asia; transition is sure to create new uncertainties about Japan's political and economic course; since July 12 elections were for upper house of Parliament, not more important lower house, they did not directly affect Hashimoto's post as Prime Minister or his party's lock on power; Hashimoto billed vote as referendum on his leadership, and party won only 44 of 126 seats up for election; photos (M)

Preliminary New York City Police Department records show number of pedestrians and bicyclists killed by drivers in New York City declined sharply in first five months of this year, putting city on pace to reach record low; figures show that from Jan 1 to June 3, 71 pedestrians and bicyclists were killed by motor vehicles, 36 percent drop from same period in 1997, in which 111 were killed (M)