Right from the top I'll say VOGUE: this magazine represents this high side of sophistication and the glamorous side of the powerful and rich society and its people. Vogue has this huge history, and it's nonetheless the world's most influential fashion magazine, OUR bible who happens to be copied every month by hundreds of magazines and in various editions.
Vogue turns up actresses and models (when they're lucky to be on the cover) into household names. Vogue represents this high end world; designers bring their vision to life throughout the glossy pages, the editors pick only the best of the best: la crème de la crème of photographers, stylists, models, editors, accessories, garments.
What makes Vogue so special in comparison to HB is that they bring an historical and cultural feel to their pictures and articles where Harper's Bazaar is more nowadays a stars' lives and gossip magazine like US Weekly if you would. They bring a commercial side of fashion: it's about selling and accessories and stars' lives and tips: there's no dream or fashion beautiful door that help you to get in that world, yeah they're closer to their readers but do we care about that? I believe what makes Vogue' strength is actually this unattainable fantasy and the fact that this world would not let everyone in, but that's why it makes it so special.
Cover style wise I mean, we can b*tch and moan about it but US Vogue covers, as boring as some may look like to some, they'll always be better than HB: which are tasteless (hello to Katy Perry's horrendous Photoshop disaster) too colorful, with too many coverlines and very repetitive ones "the age issue" anyone?? looool
Articles: Vogue again beats HB
Editorials: there's no denial that Vogue pulls off the goods better but I have to admit the HB ones are really cool too, but not on the same level.
And as much as I love VOGUE, I sometimes believe I shouldn't feel so connected to it, since it's not at all my world (I'm a student who don't get to have that much money to spend on the items of the mag, I'm a 24 something guy and not a 40 business woman that can live this life depicted in some articles) or neither corresponds to this idea I have of people living with each other and conentrating in social relations and helping the world to get better (global warming, poverty) but I guess the glossy-mario testino-over the top pictures-editorialesque vibe of supermodels on the pages and in their lives-kind of world is seducing me and is extremely tempting hehe. For me, it's a fun world, and it's a beauty world, but it's not reality:
I have in mind, Anna Wintour's daughter's sentence from "the September Issue": "It's a fun world and you can enjoy it and makes fun of it but I think there's something else out-there than fashion" or something like that = meaning I love this world and Vogue but then we have also our lives where we have to eat, help economically our families or friends or children and to make a living and not just stay in this beautiful world.
Remembering now too when Mario Testino, on CNN revealed, when shooting the Versace Campaign with Kate Moss, Carmen Kass and Carolyn Murphy: "it's an ideal world, it doesn't exist in reality but this is what we would like our world to be".