The Year Ahead in Dead Magazines

Before the Reaper spends these next two weeks getting a dirt tan, let's look into the crystal ball and see who could be slipping on the big old black banana peel by the end of the year...

Oh no, not these guys again. Have you seen the new issue? I have. It's as thin as the first two issues. Do you know how many people bought the first two issues in 2007? Big mystery there, but ask your favorite newsstand dealer how it's selling. Despite an admirable attempt at being smart and funny, there is still lots of trouble behind the scenes, as usual. At least Mort Zuckerman had some publishing experience. The new owners seems to come from the Tango Magazine School of No Experience. I'm waiting for the shoe to drop. Don't know why. Just do. It's too quiet there and that's strange for a magazine built for buzz.

Not all the fun action is in New York. Down in Miami, where Ocean Drive just sold its soul to Jason Binn, this is another place where the Reaper is waiting for the shoe to drop as they all merge. If it's not making money, it's dead meat to the new investors, so I'm keeping an eye on Ocean Drive Espanol, which is the lagging member of the family. Will it do the Conga down the River Styx?

Will Time Inc. find a buyer now that the respected business title is on life support? Who will buy? Who will buy? If somebody could pick up Spin for a pittance and some debt, surely somebody can help these dot com legends.

With Quadrangle closing the Dennis deal any day now, it would be very convenient to shove Stuff into Maxim in these last dog days of August when the only publishing news is who quit Portfolio today. Newsstand circulation dropping 33% the first half of 2007 will help make the case much easier.

Is it a mere coincidence that the second issue of Portfolio comes out the same week as Radar's new one? Is it destiny? The fact that there are 30 less ad pages is no big deal. It's expected, so I don't know why journalists are making such a fuss. What should be the focus is if more people are going to actually buy this second issue or use it as a doorstop like the debut. Because if nobody is buyin', ad sales will be cryin' and it won't be long before it's dyin'.

Other Reaper hunches, no guarantees:

• One shelter title will go under.
• Hachette's Sound & Vision is living on borrowed time.
• American Media jettisons more floating garbage.
  

Comments

[john]

the new cover has been everywhere in the press: abroad, here, on TV. Were you sleeping through last week?

[TBride]

Who the f are you reaper? Why do you spew such garbage?

[YOUR MOM]

IF PORTFOLIO IS ON IT'S WAY OUT, THEN HOW COME THE PROFILE OF THE ADVERTISERS IS SO HIGH? I DON'T THINK THOSE BRANDS WHO SPENT THE NORMAL CONDE NAST PRICES FOR THEIR PREMIRE ISSUE, AS WELL AS THE THINNER, YET COMPRIBLE, 2ND ISSUE. THINNER DOES NOT ALWAYS MEAN DEAD.

[Grim Reaper]

John, the new cover of what? Why would a magazine that was shown abroad matter to newsstand sales here in the United States?

[Grim Reaper]

YOUR MOM, Portfolio is not a near death candidate, but a long run one. I'll give it two years, like Cargo.

It does not matter who is advertising in the first or second issues and how big their names are. What does matter is if anybody is actually buying the magazine and will advertisers continue to support it past the first year if the readers don't appear. It's already a badly kept secret that there were many piles of Portfolio's first issue sitting at newsstands like new phone books in apartment building doorways. Please refer to my very first post on Portfolio.

[magazine lover]

"Sound and Vision" no longer has David Ranada, who wrote very useful and intelligent articles about technical topics that could be understood by non-techies. Now all they do is gush about celebrity custom installations and paying technicians to tweak your new TV. The new editor seems hooked on some guy who is Howard Stern's producer. Weird. Won't renew.