The Future of Magazines
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2010-08-10/future-magazines
Magazines are in trouble. Hundreds of periodicals folded last year and the former powerhouse Newsweek was sold for a dollar in exchange for millions in debt: What’s ahead for the magazine industry in the digital age.
Guests
David Folkenflik
media correspondent at NPR News.
Cathie Black
chairman of Hearst Magazines.
Justin Smith
president, Atlantic Media Company
Sidney Harman
author of "Mind Your Own Business," founder and executive chairman of Harman International, and former deputy Secretary of Commerce.
Comments
Please familiarize yourself with our Code of Conduct and Terms of Use before posting your comments.
Every year I've grown to rely on the internet for updating me on current topics of interest. It has been unfortunate that many periodicals and magazines haven't opened themselves up to readers over the net even if one article at a time. I believe that with the continued sophistication of internet advertising and information, there will be a venue where both can benefit and supply information to the appropriate audiences. Perhaps one day in lieu of magazines there will be ibooks and articles offered even in the doctors' offices etc.
There is nothing I like better than taking my favorite magazine out to the porch, or, in winter, in front of the fire to read. My favorite magazine is the New Yorker, followed by House Beautiful. I detest sitting in front of the computer to read. (This includes an IPAD, which I own.) I truly hope paper magazines are here to stay, because what they provide cannot be provided by electronic devices.
If some of my favorite magazines are unable to continue circulation as printed media, I am willing to pay a full subscription price to receive the same content, including ads, as an e-magazine. Reader-friendly formats exist that enable a reader to "flip" e-pages. Could that business model be sustainable?
Magazines are having a negative residual effect here in the Cincinnati area. Here’s an example:
PRINTING FIRM CLOSING PLANT IN LEBANON, 4 OTHERS
http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20100809/BIZ01/8100311/1076/BIZ/Print...
More job losses for the Mid-west.
Love the internet, love new gaddgets, but what we all overlook is convenience. To me in the end the RADIO is and will be the most convenient tool and source of information. Sometimes it pays to go back to basics. Reading on a smart phone is hard on the eyes for us over 50 and way to dependent on power source etc....So, go Radio go!!!
Angela from Germany now in Miami
I'm 32 years old and I've been a New Yorker subscriber for the last 12. I work all day on my computer and phone, and I really like to put those things down when it is time to relax.
Matthew in Cleveland
This discussion is fascinating! As a librarian, I am very interested in this transitional time between print and digital media. I can understand the need for publishers to stay on top of the wave and maximize their profits, but I am very concerned that print media - newspapers, books and magazines - will disappear before the greater public is ready for them to, or become so prohibitively expensive that they are merely collectors items.
We must remember that NOT everyone has, or can afford, digital devices such as iPads, Kindles or BlackBerrys. There are poor people, elderly who will not adapt easily to a digital world but are still interested and need and want to be informed.
We must not be too quick to decide "either/or". There will need to be a both/and time, and it may be a longer time than publishers want.
I started a new hobby and went to my local library to check out some magazines on the subject. I found one that I liked and decided to subscribe to it using the on-line method. There is I discovered that I could get the digital version for almost the same price as the printed magazine. I purchased the on-line version because I can access archives, search by subject etc. The links are an advantage. I have followed the links to companies that advertise and purchased their products. I do not have an iPad, I use my laptop computer and love it this way
One reason I hate print magazines is all of those ads page after page, and the little cards that fall out or interfere with reading it.
My preference is on-line and I am more than willing to pay for it.
Thank you Sidney Harmon for purchasing Newsweek. We have been subscribers for over 50 years, and we LOVE the changes that have been made. Love it, love it, love it. So glad it will still be around.
I have been a Newsweek magazine for many years. I was very disappointed when the format changed. When the economy took a dive in 2008, I wanted an in-depth article to explain to me what happened. A friend gave me a copy of The New Yorker that contained a well-written article. When the BP rig blew, up I wanted an in-depth article on that. I haven't seen one yet. The old Newsweek would have had articles on both of those subjects. I prefer my print magazines. If it comes down to print or internet, I will pay more for my magazines. Give us a choice.
I have found that a news weekly magazine is a necessity in the throne room. It's good for indepth enlightenment while sitting, plus it can serve as an emergency backup for a bare cardboard roll. I can't imagine an Ipad or laptop serving those functions.
I work in a high school media center and we struggle with reluctant readers all day long. Our goal is to provide print media to seduce the reader to open the printcopy, but realize we MUST also provide more digital options to capture the attention of those who are more comfortable with the technology interface. It is wonderful to have these options, but sadly not fiscally realistic to provide the digital hardware to serve their needs.
On a personal note, as a parent of 4 children, I can completely relate to the allure of reading a new magazine that arrives in the mailbox. My 15 year old is always thrilled to receive the latest copy of Seventeen magazine!
I'm a mother of three kids and I think having print media is important because it is something you can share with your kids. We can sit down together and read an article in the Smithsonian or Martha Stewart Living or Sports Illustrated and do it as a family. Everyone can see the page without having to pass the digital device around. It can be calming and relaxing to be reading together and not bombarded by the ads flashing along the side of the on line article.
There is a weekly news format that works online and that has been on the web for more than ten years, Slate. The news cycle is now so fast that a weekly new magazine that comes to your once a week with old news that has been everywhere for at least a week is a quaint notion. Weeklies like New Yorker which I still read religiously always have a place. I have no trouble paying for content online if it is worth it. I read New Yorker online, it is essentially the same as the hard copy version. I read all my paid subscriptions online on my laptop, I have no problem focusing on the content I am looking at.
After years of casting a wide net on the Internet and print media, I find myself "downsizing" lately. I choose a Kindle and my laptop for vacation travel. The Kindle with its e-ink allows my eyes more rest from the backlit computer screen (I work primarily on a computer, so my eyes need a rest) than even print media. I have read more magazines and books in the months I've owned a Kindle than the 5-7 years previous combined!
I consider Glynn Wilson's
locustfork.net an example of the
new media. I expect there may
be "hard copy" magazines
and newletters evolving from
online media.
Yes, indeed, "stay tuned"!!!
See:
www.locustfork.net
Why doesn't the magazines include inside a DVD of that months copy including all the links, videos etc. It can be watched on the computer for using the links or on your big screen TV as a news show which plays all the way through. You can set it up to avoid the ads and stories you don't want.
1. Frank Sesno is great as a Diane replacement.
2. Cathie Black comes across to me as a fast-talking, jargon-spewing marketer, whom I immediately start to tune out. I really don't care if Hearst publishes a magazine, I judge it on its own merits.
3. I've let go of hard copy of all the newspapers and magazines I used to get, except The New Yorker. Now, in retirement, I have the time to read much more widely and I sample dozens of publications via the Internet. In most cases I'm not a loyalist for the publication overall, I'm interested in a particular writer or a particular report/article. For example, I have no interest in Rolling Stone Magazine except for Matt Taibbi's stuff. For example, I read a lot of material from The New York Times, but I'm not a fan of their business practices which may doom them (e.g., their ill-advised investment in the Boston Globe and their high interest loans from Carlos Slim).
Why do I say all this? Because publishers don't know what to do about readers like me. And I don't think I'm alone. Publishers would like to ideally charge me anywhere from $24.95 to $49.99 per year to subscribe to each magazine. Which is not going to happen. And I rarely ever click through on an ad, having developed excellent skills at tuning them out. So, while I'm something of a news junkie, I recognize that I'm not doing anything to help these publishers stay in business. I don't have a glib solution to offer, either.
Today, my daughter and I were reading the children's print publication "Highlights" about an injured dolphin, we then used the Internet to find more information and view a live webcam of the same dolphin now in captivity. This is a small example of how the blending of two media formats can result in a learning experience for kids.