Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Q&A

Senior Editor Jeff Goldsmith interviews co-writers Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio about Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

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Compterworld picked top U.S. b-to-b book

Computerworld , a weekly tech magazine, was named the best B-to-B publication in the United States for 2006 in the over 80,000 circulation category Its web site also won for best "overall web publication." A sister publication CSO (aimed at security executives) won for publications under 80,000 circ.Both magazines are published by the International Data Group of Framingham, Massachusets. The

New mag stores

We were impressed by a visit recently to the relatively new Journo store in downtown Toronto operated by HDS (Hachette Distribution Services). It is apparent that the combination of coffee shop and magazine rack is here to stay (a natural fit). It has certainly eclipsed the old "smoke shop" model that prevailed for many years.Chapters/Indigo, of course, works hand-in-glove with Starbucks. The

Note to all you "attention-based" vehicles out there...

Estimated internet advertising in Canada is expected to reach $801 million during 2006, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau, as reported in Media in Canada. That will be up 54% from last year's $562 million. By comparison, total magazine advertising in Canada is about $1 billion ($590 million in consumer magazines)."There's no question that Canadian marketers are getting the Internet

Hear the sabres rattling

According the Ezra Levant, the Publisher of the Western Standard magazine, a strong case exists for going to war with Iran, which he characterizes as a bunch of "hotheads and nutbars". Levant's argument is echoed by a clutch of like-minded, right-wing commentators who were interviewed by Richard Foot of CanWest News Service for a column that went over the wires today and will likely appear in

Why does Eustace Tilley face left?

The chief librarians of the New Yorker, Jon Michaud and Erin Overbey have started Ask the Librarians, a blog-within-a-blog where every month they answer questions from readers about the inside workings of the magazine. It's over at the blog EmDashes (which is also quite interesting). If you ever wonder if the New Yorker fact checks its cartoons, now you can find out.

Time marches on, leaving Teen People behind

Time Inc. is stopping the print edition of Teen People magazine. It is retaining the brand on the web only. This is almost identical to the decision by Hachette Filipacchi's a few months ago to discontinue all but the website presence of Elle Girl. Teen People, which was started in 1998 as a spinoff to People (arguably the most successful magazine in the world), has about 50 employees. It is very

Globe delves into U.S. magazine sales in Canada

James Adams of the Globe and Mail takes the Canadian magazine industry seriously, which is not often the case in most newspapers. This is demonstrated by his detailed look today at trends in U.S. circulation in Canada, based largely on data from the Audit Bureau of Circulations, Statistics Canada and consulting group Pricewaterhousecoopers. In the past quarter-century, he reported, the average

The guck stops here; magazine data shows what the industry can do to help the planet

For magazine publishers who are concerned, as many are, a recent comprehensive study shows that the highest percentage of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) comes from manufacturing at pulp and paper mills, with transportation the second highest contributor of GHG emissions. (Our thanks to Neva Murtha of Markets Initiative in Vancouver for putting us onto this.)Potential ways to reduce GHG emissions

OMDC tweaks the rules

For those Ontario-based magazines who were going for it, the Ontario Media Develoment Corporation Magazine Fund has issued a couple of eligibility clarifications in advance of its application deadline August 24. [Note: we have edited the notice for clarity]1. Only commercial revenues count towards the rule that a corporation must derive more than 50% of total revenues from direct magazine

Where it stops, nobody knows

Reptile over at Rep Life, has an interesting take on the revolving door at agencies; no sooner does a rep establish a good, working relationship with someone there than they are gone, and the rep is back to square one.

Hallmark Magazine's first issue fat and prosperous

It's not even on Canadian newsstands yet, but according to a story in Media Daily News, Hallmark Magazine, the new bimonthly title from the greeting-card giant (set to start distribution in August) closed its premier September-October issue just 12 weeks after forming its sales team, says Carol Campbell-Boggs, its publisher. "We exceeded our goals by 30 percent on the revenue side and 20 percent

Department of weird mags from all over

If you want to stretch your mind beyond the parochial bounds of the Canadian industry, you might like a website run by Jean Snow (he's a guy). He is, among other things, an editor for MoCo Tokyo, a site covering contemporary design in the city and he publishes a regular spot called The Week in Magazines and the titles he talks about will take you right out of the Canadian orbit; every magazine he

Computing Canada to produce information technology supplement

A partnership has been struck between Computing Canada magazine and the Canadian information Processing Society (CIPS), which will see the Society's magazine, CIPS Across Canada discontinued in favour of a bi-monthly supplement to Computing Canada. This, according to a story in IT Business.ca, the website of Computing Canada and its related publications. Computing Canada is published bi-weekly

Cannabis Culture publisher weds

There will be at least time for a nice, long honeymoon before the extradition hearing. Marc Emery, the publisher of Cannabis Culture magazine and indefatigable campaigner for legalization of pot, got married Sunday in Vancouver even though he may soon be shipped south to stand trial on drug charges. A story in Maclean's magazine quotes Jodie Emery, 21, his new bride saying: "I will support him no

SEED takes a gay walk on the wild side

The June/July issue of the science magazine SEED reports on some controversial findings of a sex-changed researcher about the number of mammals, birds, fish and bugs that practice homosexuality. Jonah Lehrer writes about Joan Roughgarden, a former man who underwent a sex-change operation and who says:"The more socially complex the animal, the more sexual `deviance' it exhibits."That "deviance"

Quebecor World retrenches in Buffalo Niagara region

Quebecor World's decision to cut 200 jobs, or a a fifth of its workforce at its Depew printing plant in the Buffalo area has come as a real blow to upstate New York and Erie County, which depends on such high wage manufacturing job, according to a story in the Buffalo News.Kevin Clarke, the president of Quebecor World North America's book and directory publishing services group was said to rarely

Now leaving, on track two...

Ryan Bigge over at his blog The Bigge Idea, has a spoof memo that pokes fun at Chatelaine and the turmoil there.

Monster House Q&A

Senior Editor Jeff Goldsmith interviews co-writer Pamela Pettler about Monster House

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National Geographic most engaging

National Geographic magazine is the most engaging magazine in the United States, according to a recent survey conducted by Monroe Mendelsohn Research (MMR). This was reported as an item by Folio: magazine.In terms of reader engagement and perceived quality, the 2005 MMR Publication Reader Satisfaction Survey says National Geographic edges out Guideposts, Smithsonian, The Economist and

Turnbull quits Report on Business magazine

Laas Turnbull, the editor of the Globe and Mail's Report on Business Magazine has resigned, to move to Brunico Communications, the publishers of the advertising and entertainment trade magazines Strategy and Playback.UPDATE According to a story on mastheadonline (sub requ'd), Turnbull didn't want to be an editor past 40 (!) and wanted to test his mettle on the business side.

Canada Post gets seriously into the catalogue business

If you've been thinking about ramping up your marketing efforts by getting into catalogues, but are afraid of the cost and risk, you may want to pay attention to the multi-merchant catalogue Canada Post will be testing this fall. It will be about 24 pages and feature double-page-spreads from 10-15 merchants, ranging from home and garden to apparel to travel. The only confirmed merchant as of

Home Depot goes into the ad business

According to an item in Ad Week, Home Depot is starting to sell ads on its website to home improvement suppliers (Moen faucets has already signed on). What's being sold by the Home Depot Direct division is access to 4 million visitors a week to the website and more than 6 million subscribers to various Home Depot specialty newsletters.This is yet another example of the complicated nature of the

Le Good Times?

The entire Toronto-based staff of Transcontinental's Good Times magazine (the Canadian magazine for successful retirement), including Editor-in-chief Judy Brandow, will be out of work within the next few weeks as the magazine is being transferred to Montreal, where the English edition will be put out by the staff of its French language counterpart Le Bel Age. Brandow, a former editor of Canadian

Chatelaine copy and research chief departs

It was announced today that the copy and research chief of Chatelaine , Ruth Hanley, had resigned. Craig Offman, the executive editor penned a brief note to staff saying on behalf of the editor Sara Angel, "[we] are extremely grateful for her tireless effort and boundless cheer, so please join us in wishing her all the best in her new endeavours as a freelance copy whiz." Hanley's departure is

Redesign and repositioning works, just look at The Beaver

The Beaver— Canada’s History Magazine, was re-designed and re-focused entirely, starting with last October's (October/November) issue as it headed into its 85th year of publishing. The magazine had been holding its own in circulation at about 47,000 for a few years, but had essentially stayed flat; there was concern about an aging readership and the failure to grow.A new art director was brought

Canada Post 2007 rates go up, as predicted

Canada Post has come out with the official price list starting January 2007, and with it the increases which are pretty much as predicted. There is a summary of the changes at the Canada Post website and a complete price list, too.UPDATE -- Magazines Canada here provides a detailed analysis of the rates, not only for this year, but comparing it with previous years. As it points out, while this

Flipping hell. Have we got it all wrong?

So the woman's husband hands her a copy of Nuvo magazine and selects a copy of Maclean's for himself, off the waiting room pile. Then both start to thumb through the magazines. They both started from the back and flip-flip-flipped forward, pausing from time to time to point out this or that.On closer attention every one of the magazine-reading people in the waiting room were all

First Nations want small business help

One member of the brains trust behind the election of Phil Fontaine to his second term as chief of the Assembly of First Nations was Roland Bellerose, publisher of the Bragg Creek, Alberta-based bi-monthly Aboriginal Times Magazine. In a story from First Perspective, a national aboriginal news service, Bellerose says "We’re always labelled as people who are a tax burden or don’t pay taxes ­ and

Dré Dee resigns from Chatelaine

[THIS POST HAS BEEN CORRECTED] There may finally be a cap'n on the bridge, but the crew is still restless. Dré Dee, the Senior Features Editor at Chatelaine magazine, is leaving effective August 9 to quote pursue other opportunities, one of which apparently is not to work for Sara Angel, the new editor. Dee was previously senior editor at Saturday Night magazine where Angel also worked,

A bounty of city mags for Edmonton

Edmonton, which for a time didn't have a "city" magazine at all, now is about to have two. Apparently the much vaunted Alberta energy boom is throwing off benefits to the retail sector on which such "lifestyle" magazines depend heavily. Edmonton Life launched in May and is put out by the Captive Multi Media Group, which is a successor to the Vogel Communications Group, formerly best known as the

Post says it's really, really sorry to Spacing

The recent appropriation of an item from the Spacing magazine's "Spacing Wire" by the National Post has been pretty thoroughly covered by both a longish item in Masthead online, by Spacing itself and by uber-blogger Antonia Zerbisias in her blog for the Toronto Star. Rather than raking it over, here is a very thorough summary from Spacing itself. Of greatest interest were the comments on all

CMA accepts recommendations for editorial independence at its journal

An advisory panel to the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) has recommended that the editor of the Canadian Medical Association Journal should be made wholly independent of the association board, and that the journal revert to association ownership instead of being required to serve a CMA Holdings, a for-profit division. The governance review panel, headed by Dick Pound, issued a long and

Maxim, CBS say let's get digital together

The porous border between the U.S. and Canada makes it imperative to understand what is happening in the big U.S. networks and specialty cable channels and the relationship with magazines that sell both sides of the border. As but one example, the announcement was made today that men’s lifestyle property Maxim.com (the online manifestation of Maxim magazine) has formed a 'strategic

Aussie rule changes may mean foreign media ownership

Given the many parallels between the way government has gone in Australia and Canada, perhaps it is a bellwether of where media ownership legislation in Canada will go, too. A story about just-announced changes in ownership rules for Australia's $12 billion media industry says limits will be lifted on foreign companies owning a share of the national media. And Australian firms will get the

Cover that! There are commuters passing!

The ever-shifting margin between pulchritude and pornography apparently shifted across the line for the latest issue of FHM magazine in the U.S. According to a story in Media Daily News, the August issue of the popular, though raunchy, "lad's mag" was wrapped in a plain brown wrapper at three Hudson News outlets in Grand Central Station in New York City."With one black vinyl-clad forearm draped

Being yanked from Indigo newsstand not all bad news for Harper's

Being banned by Indigo may be good for single copy sales elsewhere, apparently. According to a story by Judy Stoffman in the the Toronto Star, the decision by Indigo to pull the June issue of Harper's may have increased demand for the issue elsewhere.That issue of the magazine carried a commentary by cartoonist Art Spiegelman illustrated in part by the so-called Danish cartoons (and other images)

Jailed sue jailers over ban on skin mags

Two inmates have filed a lawsuit on behalf of more than 20,000 state prisoners against the Indiana Department of Correction to overturn a policy that went into effect July 1 barring adult magazines and other printed material that depict nudity or sexual content. "The policy is written so broadly that it includes within its prohibitions such things as personal letters between prisoners and loved

Is it Digg-ing a grave for magazines?

"Magazines are prepared by professional editors. San Francisco-based Digg.com is laying assault to that notion. The site's 300,000 registered users submit links to articles they find on the Web, and then vote on the most intriguing ones; the top vote-getters graduate to the front page at Digg.com. Since its December '04 launch, Digg has focused on tech news, but now it's expanding to

'Caster becomes Media, rather than Cable

One must move with the times and cable is so yesterday. Effective with its June/July issue, the trade magazine Cablecaster is being rebranded Mediacaster (Broadband and Content)"This change is being made to reflect dynamic developments and expanding opportunities for new products and service offerings in the digital media and telecommunications industries," Publisher Grenville Pinto of the

CanWest muscles small mag for its name

Swerve is a relatively small 12-year-old magazine in Winnipeg which, by virtue of having steadily published its magazine for its gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered audience, might be presumed to have a copyright on the name and a lock on its audience.However, there is another Swerve, a startup entertainment magazine that was launched last year in Calgary by CanWest MediaWorks Publications

Supersize me, says Bell Globemedia

At least they had the decency to wait a couple of weeks after the Senate report on the dangers of media concentration before they flouted it altogether. Bell Globemedia has offered to buy all of CHUM Media to create a gargantuan company. It doesn't have too much direct impact on magazines, except for Report on Business magazine, part of the Globe. But if you want to read more (and the business

Wordy Harry: Maximum Impact II

Wouldn't like you to miss one of the winning entries in the annual Bulwer-Lytton fiction contest for writing the worst opening sentence for a novel. (The annual contest is named after the writer who coined the ultimate cliche opening: "It was a dark and stormy night.") The contest is run by San Jose State University and the complete list is available here.Personally, we like the second place

Barenaked laddies a no-no in the North

Canadian North Airlines has pulled the current issue of Up Here magazine from its seat pockets because of a cover shot of a nude hiker. The August issue shows a cover view of a man, wearing nothing but socks and hiking boots. The main cover line is "Northern hikers are getting naked. Find out why". Canadian North, which serves the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, said it found the cover

First half U.S. magazine ad numbers

The first half advertising numbers for U.S. consumer magazines are in and the winners and losers are no surprise to anyone. In fact, ad pages are flat and revenue overall up slightly. The full results are available from the Publishers Information Bureau at the Magazines Publishers of America. (Note, all PIB data is based on reported page counts multiplied by published rate card price and no

Questions being asked about Transcontinental succession plans

Quebec columnist Konrad Yakabuski in the Globe and Mail (sub requ'd) raises interesting questions about the recently announced hiring of Natalie Larivière as President of Transcontinental Inc.'s major subsidiary Transcontinental Media, which holds all the company's many magazine properties. Ms Larivière comes from rival Quebecor and seems to have leapfrogged over the heads of Isabel and

Canadian Geographic increases to 8 issues with themed travel books

Canadian Geographic is increasing its frequency from 6 to 8 issues a year, according to Media in Canada. The two extras will be themed issues of Canadian Geographic Travel, with cover months of November and May. A new companion website for travel issues will feature their "Canadian Atlas Online" and be available through www.canadiangeographic.ca. Canadian Geographic has a paid circ of roughly

Why didn't we think of that?

Dog Fancy magazine, the largest of the U.S. dog magazines, and all of the other dog magazines published by its owner, Bowtie Inc., is celebrating the relaunch of its website, DogChannel.com. And to do so, it is offering a free ringtone of a barking dog for your cellphone. Click here to listen to it. It is also offering, to people who register for Club Dog (clever way to get people to return to

Toronto Life ending summer fiction issue

After 10 years, Toronto Life is discontinuing its summer fiction issue. John Macfarlane, the editor, makes this known in his editor's column in the August issue:"A city magazine should do more than make its readers happier consumers. It should also add to their knowledge and understanding of their city. We had hoped that some of our summer fiction would—as Michael Ondaatje’s 1987 novel In the Skin

Linda Lewis leaves Today's Parent to edit More for Transcon

Linda Lewis, the editor-in-chief of Today's Parent magazine, is leaving Rogers Media and joining Transcontinental as editor of the soon-to-be-published More magazine.Lewis was with Today's Parent for 13 years, the last 8 as editor-in-chief and only two weeks ago won Best Magazine (large circulation) in the Canadian Society of Magazine Editors awards.Transcontinental recently made a deal with

Ralph Ginzburg remembered

Belated notice of the death of Ralph Ginzburg, who died last week and in his own unique way was one of the most influential people in magazine-dom and who broke trail for many of today's most outrageous and in-your-face publications. He went to jail for eight months (his prison mugshots in 1972 at right) for obscenity for publishing his magazine Eros (which never published its fifth issue) and

Anokhi trying to move to the next level

[This post has been updated and corrected; incorrect information appeared in the Toronto Star] "Some have called it a South Asian Vanity Fair," says Rajwant Girn the Toronto publisher of Anokhi, one of the best-known South Asian lifestyle magazines in North America. "We're as revolutionary as Playboy, Maxim and Oprah. They created their own markets." The magazine is featured in an article in the

Cinema Scope scoped

It's always a pleasant surprise when a Canadian magazine enjoys deserved regard elsewhere. So it was with a mention in the New York Times about the magazine Cinema Scope.Edited by Mark Peranson with contributions by an international roster of writers, this bimonthly Canadian magazine advocates for a passionate, political and purist engagement with the movies. The cover of Issue 27 displays a

Chatelaine, parsed, poked, prodded, dissected...

If you want to read a longish piece about the goings on at Chatelaine, there is such a piece by Style section editor Wendy Warburton in the Ottawa Citizen. It seems to be thorough in the bases it touches and the people it interviews, and there is some surprising new information (well, OK, gossip). The article asks the question whether Sara Angel will be able to make things right at the magazine.

OOPS! Indigo says mag ban was a mistake

Indigo Books and Music has told the publishers of a small, U.S.-based magazine that it was a mistake to remove its copies from store shelves, according to a story by James Adams in the Globe and Mail."Canada's largest retail bookseller says it accidentally blocked the distribution of a small U.S. current affairs magazine from its 260 stores and plans to start selling the magazine's June-July

Swerve takes top honours in Western Magazine Awards

Swerve, a startup magazine tabloid published as a supplement to the Calgary Herald, led the field at the 24th annual Western Magazine Awards presented Friday evening in Vancouver. It won both Best New Magazine and Magazine of the Year for Western Canada, as well as Magazine of the Year, Alberta/NWT and 2 other categories.Stephen Osborne, the editor of Geist, received the Lifetime Achievement

Strangers With Candy Q&A

Senior Editor Jeff Goldsmith interviews co-writer-star Amy Sedaris and co-writer-actor-director Paul Dinello about Strangers With Candy

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Fact checking fiction

Those of you who are regular readers will recall that a couple of times (examples, here and here) we have sung the praises of fact-checking in magazines (and entertained comments from those who think it is either a sublime, or a stupid, practise). We must admit,however, that usually we are thinking about non-fiction fact checking and had never given much thought to fact checking fiction.

Quote, unquote

"As journalists, I think our job is not only to give people what they want, but also to give people what they need."-- Toronto Life editor John Macfarlane, during a panelat Magazines West, Friday, July 7, 2006

Digital publishing will help, not harm pubs

Cannabalism of the revenue of traditional publications by digital publishing is a myth, according to a new British study. The British branch of the publishing consultancy Deloitte says that publishers with digital operations predicted that digital will augment revenue, and that by 2012 up to 40% of revenue will come from online activity. Deloitte's report, launched in conjunction with the UK

The red Queen

Either there is a designated reader at Indigo Books and Music who browses the magazines to determine if they are running something not approved of (which seems ridiculously unlikely) or the chain reacts like city inspectors, on complaint from customers. Neither of which seems to be the mechanism Indigo used to decide to pull another magazine from the shelves. A smallish U.S. humanist magazine,

French-language hockey mag to launch

According to Media in Canada, Les Éditions Gesca is launching a new magazine geared towards francophone hockey fans. "The pub, Hockey - Le Magazine, will release its first issue Aug. 18 and will put out seven issues throughout the hockey season (ending in June). The first issue, which will have a circ of 40,000, will include a fantasy hockey bible (and will also be distributed in English) while

Pure Canada publishing pitches invited

Pure Canada magazine is published by the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC) to increase awareness and interest in Canada as a four-season tourism destination, particularly for U.S. travellers. The annual circulation of what is, in real terms, an elaborate travel catalogue, is about 825,000. Now, CTC wants to outsource the 100-page magazine and is asking for expressions of interest to develop,

Shop til you drop your guard

A question about "cover wraps" at a Magazines West seminar was whether they should be considered; I said generally no. But in a case of extreme synchronicity I now find an article in the Wall Street Journal about Hearst's Shop Etc. magazine selling its entire cover to Target stores.Its August issue is going to half a million subscribers with a cover paid for by retailer Target. Complete with

Préfontaine to head up Can Geo

André Préfontaine, until recently President of Transcontinental Media, has been named President of Canadian Geographic Enterprises (CGE) and Publisher of Canadian Geographic magazine as of July 15. Since last February, Préfontaine has advised and assisted the Society in a process that led to the buyout of Key Publishers’ 50% interest in CGE, a transaction that is scheduled to close at the same

Slower, but steady growth seen in Canadian magazines: PwC

[This post has been updated]International consultants Pricewaterhousecoopers in their Global Entertainment and Media Outlook: 2006-2010 say that magazine advertising in Canada is expected to increase 2.9% compounded annually. This it attributes to moderating economic growth that will soften ad demand in both consumer and business magazine sectors and rising postal rates that will continue to

Purchase part of larger Transcon internet strategy

Transcontinental Inc. bought Zoupla Communications Inc., operator of the French-language cooking website Recettes.qc.ca, according to a story in the Globe and Mail. It said that this relatively small deal (sources familiar said it was only a few million dollars) is part of a larger plan to spend more than $50-million over the next four years boosting Transcon's presence on the

New editor named to United Church Observer

Associate editor David Wilson has been appointed editor and publisher of The United Church Observer, one of the oldest church publications -- and perhaps its most lively and professional religion magazine-- in Canada. The editorship is an important position, and one the church doesn't change willy-nilly. Wilson becomes only the seventh editor since the United Church was founded in 1925. Muriel

Natalie Larivière named President of Transcontinental Media

Natalie Larivière has been appointed President of Transcontinental Media. She fills the top job in the Transcontinental Inc. magazine- and newspaper-publishing division vacated by Andre Préfontaine. Transcontinental Media is Canada's largest circulation consumer magazine publisher (as well as its largest stable of community newspapers), has more than

"My friend Anna"

Barbara Amiel, currently fulminating against all leftish tendencies in the safe confines of Maclean's, also writes for the Daily Telegraph in London. And nowhere is her maintenance of her view of the world and her defence of her friends more in evidence than the recent article about The Devil Wears Prada, the film based on a novel hatcheting a barely disguised Anna Wintour, the editor of Vogue.