Ascent goes even higher; Shameless needn't be

[Note: This post has been corrected and updated.] For the second time, out of 5 straight nominations, Ascent magazine has won one of Utne magazine's coveted Independent Press Awards. The Montreal-based yoga magazine's win is announced in the just-published January-February issue of Utne. Every year, the staff of the magazine troll through some 1,300 independently published magazines to come up

Why publishers could become tree huggers

While the previous item spoke of an American "greenbuilding" initiative, there is an even more laudable program working quietly and persistently closer to home. That's a 3-year-old lobbying venture that is attempting to wean Canadian magazine (and book) publishers off paper that contains fibre from ancient, old growth and endangered forests.Markets Initiative is a joint project of Greenpeace, the

The greenbuilding of America

If you think that a) there are no new niches and b) no more smart people to spot and take advantage of them, perhaps you'll take heart from the U.S. launch of Green Builder. Working out of Montpelier, Vermont, and having accessed the list of the National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) partners John Wagner and a New Mexico builder called Ron Jones, are creating a printed, national trade

Quote, unquote

Anne Moore, Chair and CEO of Time Inc., who submitted to a quizzing by Advertising Age (subscription req'd) about recent cuts of 105 staff positions, including some very senior people:I still believe in the magazine industry. What we do, our core competency, is trusted editing skills. Whether we do it on paper or not remains to be seen, but in an age of too much information, isn’t our core

Is blood thicker than culture?

The aboriginal magazine Spirit ventures onto controversial ground in its current issue (marking two years of publishing), by exploring the question of "out-marriage". It's when Indians marry non-status, white or non-Indian partners. Spirit's publisher, Harmony Rice, says its something that her audience talks about all the time, so it's time the magazine did, too: “It’s a question that we are

How very Canadian

Time Canada has named Mr. Justice John Gomery as its Canadian "Newsmaker of the Year". This seems a very Canadian sort of icon, doesn't it? He was cited for working hard, despite suffering a case of shingles, and because of the impressive scope of his inquiry. But wasn't the scope of his enquiry pretty much determined by his terms of reference when he was appointed? Not to take anything away from

Ooo, look, everybody's out of step except our Paul

BBC News has quoted Maclean's columnist Paul Wells criticizing Prime Minister Paul Martin's statements about the United States. [Paul Wells] says with Mr Martin fighting for re-election after his government was brought down in a vote of no-confidence, he is behaving like a politician with his back to the wall. "He's allowed his worst instincts to come to the fore and he's basically

Walk The Line Q&A

Senior Editor Jeff Goldsmith interviews co-writer/director James Mangold for Walk The Line.

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Two times unlucky

The hip New York magazine Radar has been suspended, according to an article in Newsday. It was launched in 2003, but fizzled for lack of financing. It was revived recently under the protection of Daily News owner Mortimer Zuckerman, but after three issues the plug has been pulled again. It had a reported or claimed circulation of 150,000. But in U.S. terms that is tiny, and the New York print ad

Free but not a free ride

Free commuter dailies, such as Metro and Dose in Canada, and A.M. New York, Metro, Red Eye, Express and Quick in the U.S. may not be having such a fundamental impact on traditional newspapers as first thought. This, at least, according to a study by Scarborough Research sponsored by the New York Times. Now, of course, the Times would have a significant vested interest in making this case, but the

Standard and Poor's outlook for U.S. mags

Standard and Poor, the rating agency, forecasts that magazine ad pages in the U.S. will post minimal growth in 2006, in the low single-digits, according to an article on the UK-Ireland edition of Yahoo Finance. "Ad pages increased an anemic 0.3% in the first 10 months of 2005, according to the Publishers Information Bureau, as declines in pages for home furnishings, technology, and automotive

Looming deadline for 2005 mag award entries

If you're going to take off Christmas week, that leaves very little time to complete your entries to the National Magazine Awards. Deadline is January 10*. Being magazine people, you tend to start thinking about it at, rather than before the deadline. A good habit to break. *Curiously, the MagAwards said that entries "without exception" would have to be postmarked by January 10. Then they say

The big dogs howl

The impact of the shift to digital publishing is felt most keenly at companies with the most to lose. Yesterday, Time Inc., the world's largest publisher of consumer magazines, laid off 105 mostly business employees and started from the top down, chopping Ad Sales Chief Jack Haire, Time magazine President Ellen Naughton and Richard Atkinson, executive vice-president in charge of Time Inc.'s news

Sounds like fun, huh?

The Western Standard Cruise which ended on Sunday (the participants sailed from Dec. 4 to 11 on the Holland America Line's MS Westerdam) took a knot of about 75 right-thinking people (they had been hoping for 100) on a short jaunt from Nassau, Bahamas to St. Maarten, Tortola and back to Half Moon Bay in Bahamas.Scheduled to entertain the cruisers were speakers including Publisher Ezra Levant,

Move east, think small

The Globe and Mail publishes an online magazine called Report on Small Business and has just announced that it has scooped the Editor-in-Chief of BC Business magazine to run it. Noel Hulsman had been in the top chair at Canada Wide's BC Business for a little more than a year. He has an MA in urban planning from the University of Waterloo and, according to the Globe's internal announcement, went

Awards hatched from Penguin Eggs

Congratulations are in order for the Edmonton-based folk music magazine Penguin Eggs and its editor Roddy Campbell who, with Arthur McGregor from the Ottawa Folklore Centre, launched the Canadian Folk Music Awards. The inaugural awards were made in Ottawa on Saturday (the Winnipeg group Nathan won for best contemporary folk offering and best vocal group for its album Jimson Weed. For other

Murdoch Davis guns for Martin

Murdoch Davis, former editor of the Winnipeg Free Press and now Editor of The Beaver, weighed in on the op ed page of the Toronto Star on Saturday about the proposed handgun ban. Clearly he is not taking his perspectives into genteel retirement at the history magazine. He makes it clear he thinks the handgun ban is a bad idea and son of a bad idea (the gun registry).By the way, the current issue

Ontario mags in the money

There is a great variety in the list of magazines that were tapped for the Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC) Magazine Fund, announced to recipients November 10. They ranged from trade titles (Collision Repair) to gay titles (Fab) to environmental mags like Alternatives Journal. Successful applicants will receive up to 75 per cent of their total project budget, capped at a maximum of

Memoirs of a Geisha Q&A

Senior Editor Jeff Goldsmith interviews screenwriter Robin Swicord.

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Towell snaps up a French prize

Noted Canadian photographer Larry Towell, whose work has appeared in several Canadian magazines, has won the Prix Nadar in France for his book No Man's Land. It is awarded annually to a book of photography edited in France. To read more, go here.

Naughty and not so nice

Grist magazine, an online environmental magazine from Seattle ("gloom and doom with a sense of humour"), wonders whether people are aware of toxins in their sex toys, specifically polyvinyl chlorides. These are apparently inevitable in anything that is soft and squishy or pliable. You can read more about this here.

Paper pause

HELSINKI (Reuters) - The world's top magazine paper company UPM said it would close a Canadian mill for three months, since exports from the plant to the United States were currently unprofitable. The announcement was made Wednesday, December 7. The Miramichi mill in New Brunswick would close for three months from February 1, 2006 -- the slowest period of the year -- but two sawmills and its

Yes means Know

The first issue of Know is coming out of Victoria in January, intending to make science fun for children between six and nine years old. It's tagline says it's "the science magazine for curious kids".Know magazine editor Adrienne Mason, a biologist and author of 20 books for kids and adults, says children want to know about the science involved in chewing gum and other things sciency. "Young

Bloggin', but no funny business, you hear?

The trade publication Solid Waste and Recycling has just launched a blog by Editor Guy Crittenden. This is a publication (and a job) where the main editorial is about biosolids, so it's serious stuff.And while the blog gives SW&R (if I may take the liberty of calling it that) the opportunity to keep in touch with readers in the spaces between its 6 issues a year, clearly the Editor didn't want to

Bells are broadcasting

A national, English-language specialty television channel called Wedding Bells TV has been licensed by the Canadian Radio Television and Telecommunications Commission. The decision was made on behalf of a company controlled by the Gagliano family, owners of St. Joseph Communications and St. Joseph Printing. St. Joseph Communications publishes the fat and successful Wedding Bells magazine as well

The display blizzard

Am I alone in thinking that the number of coverlines on some magazines has reached the absolute maximum possible? The current issue of Seventeen has barely a place for the cover subject's nose to poke through. (Not that any Canadian magazines would do this...) Larry Dobrow, who occasionally does commentaries on magazines for Media Post, took off after Seventeen recently:Seventeen seems to think

Robertson vs Globe gets to high court

It only took 10 years, but the suit by writer Heather Robertson against appropriation of her copyright by the Globe and Mail, is finally before the Supreme Court today. See the Creators Copyright Coalition site for more information. It could be weeks or months more before the court hands down a written ruling. This lawsuit is, in effect, a class action on behalf of all freelancers.

But was the breakfast any good?

Our friend Reptile, who blogs the reps' life over here, provides an interesting take on the recent Magazines Canada seminar laudably attempting to make connections between sales people, agencies and advertisers.

Eyes east for Rogers trade books?

Rogers Publishing is, cautiously, considering expanding its trade publishing into the market in China, according to an article in Monday's Globe and Mail by Gordon Robertson. Chief executive officer Brian Segal said Rogers is less interested in consumer publishing and more concentrating on growth possibilities from exporting trade titles to China. “It's underdeveloped. If I was to do anything —

A world of magazines

The Federation of the Independent Periodical Press (FIPP) has published in its Magazine World a review of the kinds of magazines being launched all over the world. As we've said before, FIPP data about the Canadian market is so skewed and inaccurate that one must question anything they do. Still, the story is interesting, as are the many and various new titles. Shown is a new French magazine for

Worth noting and quoting

Amidst the thicket of question marks surrounding last week's Bell Globemedia (BGM) deal, not least of which is what exactly the Toronto Star hopes to get out of its 20% share, comes this curious comment. Geoff Beattie, president of the Thomson family holding company, Woodbridge, which now dominates with 40% of the company was reacting to suggestions that newspapers are being eclipsed by the

Them's fightin' words, mister

"It's hard to imagine a less romantic milieu for a romantic comedy than the Canadian magazine industry." That's how Jason Anderson's Globe and Mail review of Cake begins. The made-in-Canada series stars Heather Graham, Sandra Oh and Taye Diggs. Read it here (subscription req'd)Let's top Mr. Anderson. A less romantic milieu? The Globe's newsroom, for a start.And, by the way, can an entire

View of point

Phrase of the week: strategic inflection point. Which is where the American Press Institute says daily newspapers are at, losing audience and the technological race. They have come up with a plan to deal with this critical juncture, apparently....read about it in Ad Age, which acidly says that it's "a little late".

Great minds think alike....hmmm

When it was announced by Martha Stewart Omnimedia that it was going to launch a new magazine called Blueprint for young people (principally women) starting out in their first homes, there was head-scratching at Time Inc., which was also considering a proposal for a magazine for...well, you guessed it, a magazine called...Blueprint. Seems that former staffers at Real Simple (part of the Time Inc.

Squid and The Whale Q&A

Senior Editor Jeff Goldsmith interviews writer/director Noah Baumbach.

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50 Plus reports latest financials

The troubled Fifty Plus magazine has announced its first quarter results, for the period ended September 30.Net income for the quarter was $56,919 compared to net income of $36,233 for the comparable quarter last year.Revenues were up $13,986 for the quarter to $210,786 including increased advertising revenues of $23,044. Expenses were down about 4% for the quarter, to $153,867 compared to

New mag for Toronto black community

A new quarterly magazine celebrating the power, lifestyle, interests and influence of black Canadians, Continental African and Carribbean communities in Canada has begun distributing in Toronto. It's called Sway. It's a joint venture of Chioma Productions and Torstar's Metroland Printing and Publishing, which is handling distribution of the 50,000 initial copies. Mostly it is distributed free in

Media Digest download available

The 2005-06 Media Digest from the Canadian Media Directors Council is now available for download in pdf format and for browsing online. It's a useful reference work for current and historical information on magazines and competing media as well as providing some summary data on markets across the country.

Rogers says you had me at Hello!

Rogers Media will be launching a branch plant version of the celebrity title Hello! next fall. It will be a Canadianized version (made so by an editorial staff of 10 about to be hired) with about 60% of the content shared with its international editions. Hello! started in Spain as Hola! and is a huge seller in Great Britain. The UK edition, which sells about 7,000 copies on Canadian newsstands,

Quill & Quire and WHERE

Alilson Jones, the Publisher of Quill & Quire (the library and book industry trade magazine) is taking on new responsibilities as Business Development Director for WHERE Canada, the stable of tourism magazines at St. Joseph Media. To do the new job, she will be giving up sales responsibilities at Quill & Quire.WHERE Canada's various regional arms (Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa and Calgary) plus