Oh I definitely agree with this. It might not be cool to say it, but the reason so many of these magazines have become dull and lifeless is because they try to be everything to everyone and are therefore flat, boring, and look like everything else out there. They need to take a chance on glamour and elegance. I think Harper's Bazaar France is the closest I've seen to what I'm talking about, but even they are not *that* great. But...I'm middle aged, so maybe it's a completely different world for younger people and I'm just out of touch, who knows.
I mean the press is responsible of it own downfall. I think the suits didn’t address the diversity question the right way and then, they tried to open the gates to everybody.
For me at the root of that question was including diverse talents in the narrative of the magazines. It wasn’t so much about the institutions themselves.
Add to that the fact that mainstream magazines have absorbed the indie aesthetic and ditched the glossy glamorous imagery and you have that result. I think change is necessary and in some ways, US Vogue and VP under Alt survived quite well but the whole system was destroyed because of that.
About Bazaar France, tbh, the magazine isn’t that relevant imo. However it serve a real purpose for Bollore. The talents he has at the magazine give him a legitimacy in that lane of media he does not know. And they have enough funds to offer that level of quality. Bollore is much more concern with the controversies regarding his TV empire.
Is Bazaar France a leading voice in fashion media? No. But the name, the talents involved are enough for industry people to notice. But the magazine doesn’t have a strong POV imo and it’s due to the fact that the Franck Durand/Emmanuelle Alt aesthetic has been used and abused for years now.
I think Bazaar Italia under the Art Direction of Marc Ascoli had a distinctive voice. He is gone and so the interest towards the publication too.
I think sometimes we have to step back and realize it's not just Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, etc. that's having a tough time as magazines... it's ALL magazines across all interest/hobby areas. People can blame Anna for ruining Vogue, Samira ruined Bazaar, etc. but you can't neglect that magazines are just struggling period.
Yes magazines are struggling but in a way the emergence of indies publications, the creation of new franchises, the emergence of lifestyle supplements shows that it’s an evolution rather than a real struggle.
Magazines were just too big and too much but when you look at the pivot Anna managed to do to keep Vogue US part of the conversation, you understand that in a multimedia world, the sole voice of a magazine is not enough to be seen as The authority. We had a real demonstration of power this year between The Met Gala and Vogue World. Their YouTube and IG are strong.
They are doing documentaries….
But somehow, the magazine content is weak. I feel like when you have such a large voice on so many medias, it’s maybe more clever to be a little bit more edgy in the publication.
Why the best « collections editorial » was in M le Monde and not on Vogue?
Does having badly retouched portraits by Leibovitz really helps the publication?
So yes, it’s a general issue but some choices don’t make the situation better. I have the same issue with Numero Magazine…
