The Business of Magazines

[sethii]

That's scary. You could only see his butt and it was far from p*rn*gr*ph*c.

 

[Miss Dalloway]

^^Ridiculous, especially since its next to nude Bar Rafaeli Esquire cover!

 

[j'adorekapusta]

That's scary. You could only see his butt and it was far from p*rn*gr*ph*c.

yes it is indeed a very interesting issue how female body has got sexualized and then totally acceptable in any of its forms while men's nudity seems to be such a strong taboo...

 

[Flashbang]

Really, America?

 

[tigerrouge]

It's crazy that a naked woman with a horror novelist's writing on her is acceptable, but a heterosexual actor camping it up on a clearly marked 'comedy issue' is somehow not.

 

[kasper!]

don't know if this is the right place..

can anybody tell what's the difference between Vogue Mexico and Vogue Latin American?

 

[tarsha]

^ Nothing, they're SAME editions.

But in Mexico there's written MEXICO inside the letter O and in other Latin countries : LATINO AMERICA.

 

[iluvjeisa]

It's crazy that a naked woman with a horror novelist's writing on her is acceptable, but a heterosexual actor camping it up on a clearly marked 'comedy issue' is somehow not.

Has anyone seen that movie though? I'm surprised it went up on the big screen...wondering how censored it is for the American audience....

 

[glósóli]

Does anyone know what has happened/is happening to Hobo magazine? I don't think they've released a new issue since last winter..

 

[Faith Akiyama]

Has anyone seen that movie though? I'm surprised it went up on the big screen...wondering how censored it is for the American audience....

Believe it or not it wasn't censored here (What you saw is exactly what we saw), but they did edit the original version before releasing it worldwide just to get an R rating instead of NC-17 here

 

[tarsha]

Newsstand Sales Fall, but Overall Circulation Steady

It may be summertime, but the living isn’t easy for magazine publishers.

The latest figures from the Audit Bureau of Circulations will show another half of declines in single-copy...

Full article is available for them who has WWD Subscription.

WWD.com

 

[cesarcmma]

The change of EIC at VMAN seems to be doing good for them...the last eds posted on vman.com are great!

 

[MissMagAddict]

source | wwd.com

POP ART: It seems Pop magazine’s new editor in chief, Dasha Zhukova, was serious about making the relaunched title as much about art as fashion. For the first issue, Zhukova has tapped Damien Hirst to design two covers, which both feature the 13-year-old Chicago-based fashion blogger Tavi Gevinson. Hirst has made his signature butterflies the backdrop of both covers and customized the title’s logo with polkadots. Meanwhile, Ed Ruscha designed a limited edition hardback cover of Pop to mark the launch of his show at London’s Hayward Gallery this fall.

“The new Pop launches at an exciting turning point in fashion, where the possibilities and potential for creativity are almost overwhelming,” said Zhukova. “The new era is more fluid than ever before; one where teenage girls in Chicago, fashion editors in Paris, street photographers from Berlin and bloggers everywhere…redefine the fashion landscape.” To wit, the title features an eclectic mix of subjects — Cicciolina dressed by Ricardo Tisci; a celebration of Margaret Thatcher as a fashion icon; an interview with the president of Liberia conducted by Barbara Bush, and a shoot in which Rodarte “celebrate U.S. stem-cell scientists,” according to the magazine.

The launch issue has 316 pages, and a spokeswoman for Bauer, its publisher, said advertisers include Prada, Dior, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Chanel, Armani, Chloe, Mulberry, Tod’s and Roberto Cavalli. Pop has a cover price of 5 pounds, or $8, and hits newsstands Tuesday.

 

[tigerrouge]

The Guardian considers advertorials - as the name suggests, generally they are adverts disguised as editorial content. In UK magazines (I don't know about the US), such pages have to carry a notice somewhere that it's a commercial promotion, usually in tiny writing at the top of the page. Of course, in some magazines, nearly all the content is promotion of a sort, but other publications have to be more careful about how they present information:

Publishers weigh up the perils and the positives of advertorials

31 August 2009

Daily Express rapped by Advertising Standards Authority for disguising an advertorial as a news story

We've all done it. Got halfway through an article before noticing that something isn't quite right. That just because it contains extracts of crushed pearl and real aloe plant, a new deodorant probably isn't worth a half-page feature. Then we realise: the piece is an advertiser promotion.

That mix-up is increasingly likely to happen, as advertorials become more commonplace and more subtle, looking less like promotion and more like journalism.

Earlier this month the Daily Express was again heavily criticised by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for disguising advertorials as news stories – only the week before the paper had been rapped by the watchdog for using the same practice to try and "intentionally" dodge the advertising code.

The most recent adjudication referred to an entire page of the paper dedicated to Goldshield Rozip supplement. The bottom half of the page was an advertisement, while above it was a story promoting to the benefits of the supplement, written by a journalist. In the future, the ASA said, advertising features must be clearly labelled as such by the paper.

Such rulings might not do much for the standing of the Express. But, as marketing budgets become increasingly strained, advertisers seeking better ways to make their brand to stand out are increasingly looking to advertorials – and are prepared to pay a 15% to a 100% premium for editorial tie-ups. Making sure the rules surrounding advertising features are clear has never been more important.

Justine Southall, the publishing director at Cosmopolitan, says that last year the glossy had its best year ever for advertorials – and this year is also on track for a strong result. Advertisers have a growing appetite for advertorials because of the cut-through they offer, she says.

But making sure that the relationship between advertiser and reader is clear is essential. "That includes making sure the point size of 'Cosmopolitan Promotion' is clearly legible," Southall says. And, despite the tough economic conditions, she says her magazine will continue to display commercial messages obviously. "In this market holding the line is undoubtedly more difficult, which is why we are seeing people being less transparent at other publishers. This is really dangerous for the long-term health of a brand."

But signposting an advertorial clearly, while editorially desirable, can also mean that consumers do not feel much compulsion to read it. Advertisers, therefore, are also looking for other ways to attach their brands to editorial.

The trend for tie-ups between brands and editorial started in the free market with the emergence of logos on features, sections, and even news pages, says Vanessa Clifford, the head of press at the media agency Mindshare. Now, other publications have opened themselves up to similar deals – such as book clubs in women's titles supported by a relevant brand, for example.

Clifford believes that brands can enjoy a good relationship with editorial teams. "Our job isn't to bastardise editorial," she says. "If both parties are sensitive to the others values, then brands and editorial can find a way to work seamlessly together."

But what do such developments mean for journalists? A lack of advertising has led to advertising sales teams increasing the pressure on editorial departments to accept commercial partnerships. That is not easy for journalists who have had the importance of impartiality drummed into them.

Journalists at upmarket glossy magazines are used to writing promotional copy, but they are almost always paid freelance rates for doing so. At weeklies, and more downmarket monthlies, journalists are expected to absorb commercial copy into their day jobs for no extra money.

Clifford says that editorial teams have become more open to dialogue with brands than they were a few years ago but she does not think this is because they have been forced to by the commercial situation – but rather because editorial skills are changing in line with the business.

However, one feature editor of a fashion title disagrees. "There isn't a single week that goes by when my sales director doesn't drag me into some kind of commercial conversation," she says. "I am almost becoming immune to it. I am told that it is these kind of deals that ensure job stability so I feel obliged to agree to it. What I am worried about, and what I dedicate my efforts to, is ensuring readers don't get fed up with us pushing a product in editorial space that just doesn't deserve to be there."

Other journalists are more relaxed about advertising features. "They tend to be either competitions or special offers. It's blindingly obvious the difference between straight editorial and these paid-for promotions," says one newspaper section editor.

However, journalists do need to stand up to advertisers looking for editorial coverage. "There have been two occasions in the last month where I have had to stand my ground over an advertiser trying to infiltrate a feature via our commercial team," he says. "But hey, that's probably a sign of the times – and no editor worth their salt is going to allow it."

The ASA's criticism of the Express should serve as a reminder to media owners that it is essential to retain distinct boundaries between paid for advertising, and genuine journalistic impartiality.

 

[mishahoi]

In Japan, advertorials are called tie-ups, and they smother the front and inside pages of each and every magazine with no notice or otherwise visible writing that it is an ad paid for by the brand. They usually are a fashion editorial featuring only that brand can run up to 12 pages, and usually with looks pulled straight from the runway--no new styling involved. It is quite awful...

 

[sethii]

Semi-nude model 'looked under 16'


A clothing firm has been criticised for using a model who looked under 16 in a "provocative" magazine advert.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled the shots for American Apparel "could be seen to sexualise a model who appeared to be a child".
In a series of six pictures, the model revealed more and more skin until her nipple was partially exposed.
American Apparel argued the model was 23 and the images showed how to use its clothing to create different looks.
The Los Angeles-based retailer has been banned from publishing the same advertisement again.
'Serious offence'
The initial shots showed the girl wearing just a hooded top and shorts with minimal make-up.
The ASA decided "the photographs suggested that she was stripping off for an amateur-style photo shoot".
It also ruled that she appeared under 16 in some of the shots.
"Because the ad could be seen to sexualise a model who appeared to be a child, under the age of 16 years, we concluded that it was inappropriate and could cause serious offence to some readers," said the ASA.
But it did not uphold a complaint from one reader who said the nudity was offensive and could have been seen by children.
The ASA noted the advertisement was published in a magazine called Vice, which is aimed at the 18-34 market and distributed free in bars, nightclubs and clothes shops.
It ruled the nudity "was not so overly gratuitous as to make it unsuitable for or likely to cause serious or widespread offence to the target audience".

news.bbc.co.uk

 

[sethii]

The Guardian considers advertorials - as the name suggests, generally they are adverts disguised as editorial content. In UK magazines (I don't know about the US), such pages have to carry a notice somewhere that it's a commercial promotion, usually in tiny writing at the top of the page. Of course, in some magazines, nearly all the content is promotion of a sort, but other publications have to be more careful about how they present information:

The ASA's adjudication on that advertorial can be read here for anyone interested http://www.asa.org.uk/asa/adjudications/Public/TF_ADJ_46749.htm

 

[MissMagAddict]

source | wwd.com

OUT OF STYLE: Time Style & Design will suspend publication after its latest issue, which will be distributed today. The fashion spin-off of Time published six issues year at its peak, but had planned to publish four issues this year as luxury advertising dramatically decreased. Ad pages for the title had shrunk from nearly 400 pages last year, to fewer than 100 this year so far. A Time spokeswoman said the company could bring back the title if the ad climate improves. Kate Betts will remain at Time as a contributing editor and cover fashion for the flagship newsweekly. “Time has a long-standing history of covering fashion. That will not change,” said the spokeswoman. Betts will also cover the shows for time.com, blogging and tweeting for the site and attending the shows in Europe. However, four editorial staffers and two business side employees will be let go as a result of the closure.

 

[ysljunkie]

Too bad, wondering if those were the only people working full time.

 

[tigerrouge]

The best outcome I'd hope for in the current economic climate would be to see these spin-offs incorporated back into the main magazine.

I've noticed that "The Gloss" - an Irish fashion and lifestyle mag - has ceased publication as a magazine, but has become a supplement in a national newspaper. It's a way to keep the identity alive and ready to move forward when conditions improve (blog.marketing.ie

The Gloss returns as Irish Times insert

August 19th, 2009

Upmarket women’s magazine The Gloss will no longer be sold as a standalone publication and instead will be inserted into copies of The Irish Times on the first Thursday of the month as and from September.

Paul Farrell, commercial director, The Irish Times and chairman of the Marketer of the Year judging panel, said The Gloss will be promoted the week before release to let consumers know of its new form of distribution.