I'm not a die-hard political follower, but there is one publication that I like to digest on a regular basis. Weekly, even. I've tried Macleans magazine this past year, but for some reason it never really grabbed my attention. One magazine that has been able to overcome my erratic attention span is Newsweek.
Newsweek was launched in 1933 by a group of U.S. stockholders. In 1961, The Washington Post Company purchased Newsweek and has held onto it for the past 49 years.
Newsweek's total liabilities were in excess of $47 million, so don't run out with your bag o' loonies trying to source out a deal. This venerable magazine is worth a lot more in my opinion as at least an introduction for many people into the larger issues facing our world. American politics can be very entertaining as well. I only wish their influence was curbed a little bit more so the rest of the world didn't have to worry about the possibility of an ex-Alaskan governor controlling arguably the most powerful nation on the planet.
I hope Newsweek can sort out its financial troubles in order to stay afloat. There's no real enemy here, it's just the state of the magazine market in 2010. Until the day comes when we are comfortable enough to read everything online (or magazines become solely a subscription market), a magazine's publication costs will always threaten its bottom line. Newsweek's $5.95 per issue cost doesn't help its situation either and the reason why I've been a subscriber for the past three years. When you're trying to print a quality magazine every week in a declining ad market, I guess you can sometimes shoot yourself in the foot. I suppose the commentary of contributors Fareed Zakaria, Jonathan Alter, and George F. Will don't come cheap; nor should they. They are worthwhile investments to their institution, journalism. Jon Meacham, Newsweek's editor, has left the magazine to pursue other interests, leaving behind some large shoes to fill. His insight into the week's events were always thoughtful and intelligent.
There is still hope though I guess. Journalistic opinion need not lie in publications on the newsstand. There are always the likes of small "r" Republicans to fill in the gaps left behind.
4 comments:
Y'know, Greg, the point of the statement "small-r republican" is to spell the word with a small r, so as not to make people think the person in question is a member of the party. ;)
Ha! Duly noted. :)
I canceled my Newsweek subscription. Getting worse by the week!
As much as my iPhone is taking over my information-gathering activities, I firmly believe there will always be a market for a small number of print magazines. The key challenge will be to find the combination of content and presentation that appeals to enough people to make each one viable.
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