Tài liệu môn PR truyền thông - Chapter 5: Magazines

The Dynamics ofMass CommunicationJoseph R. DominickSeventh EditionPart 2The Print MediaChapter 5MagazinesMagazines: A Short EtymologyIn colonial times the word magazine meant a warehouse or depository, and print magazines ever since that time have patterned themselves after that model, offering up a storehouse of facts, opinion, news, features, and attractive graphics.Colonial Magazine HistoryWritten with the educated elite in mind, and with a strong political bias, most colonial magazines quickly folded simply because they couldn’t make money. However, they had a lasting impact; it was both to encourage literary and artistic expression and to unify the colonies during the Revolutionary War. The Penny Press Era 1820s – 1860sMagazines begin appealing to mass audiencesContent centers on middle class concerns, social crusades, women’s issues, and sensationalismStories often feature the best American writersThe Magazine Boom 1860s – 1900s Between 1860 - 1900 there was almost a 700 percent increase in new magazines (260 to 1800). The boom was due in large part to: . more available venture capital . improved printing techniques . lower magazine prices . The Postal Act of 1879 (discounted mailing rates) Between World Wars I and II The big change in magazines during this time was a move toward content specialization, giving rise to three new genres:the digest, as in Readers Digestthe news weekly, as in Timethe pictorial magazine, as in Life and LookThe Post WW II PeriodContinued focus on content specializationNarrowly defined audiencesNew magazines spawned by social changesincreases in leisure time, more moneyemerging ethnic identitiesnew urban and suburban lifestyle interestsswing toward more liberal views Contemporary Magazine Industry The 1980s – 1990s saw several important new trends in the magazine industry:greater concentration of ownershipgeneral decline in single-copy salescontinued focus on content specialization, aiming for an increasingly smaller and more homogeneous groupsmore magazines continued to go onlinelargest publisher (Time Warner) merges with largest online provider, America Online (AOL)Symbiosis: Magazines in the Digital AgeMagazines and the Web have proven to be good allies in terms of shared referrals, mutual outlets for parent company goods and services, and the potential to be reciprocal revenue boostersMost publications now hold a “must have” attitude about complementary web sitesDEFINING FEATURESOF MAGAZINES Magazines, more than any other mass medium, can attract and hold specialized audiences· Magazines are the one medium most in tune with social, economic, demographic, and cultural trends· Magazines have the power to influence social trends· They offer a convenient high-quality format of portability and outstanding graphicsMAGAZINE INDUSTRY ORGANIZATIONMagazines could be classified in any number of ways, but these two categories are the most common:by contentby manufacturing processContent Categories general consumer magazinesfunction of Standard Rate and Data Service business or trade publicationsvertical vs. horizontal magazinesliterary reviews and academic journalsnewsletterspublic relations magazines Function Categories Production Distribution Circulation = subscription + single-copy sales . paid circulation . controlled circulation RetailingMAGAZINE OWNERSHIP Mergers and acquisitions have produced an industry dominated by large corporations, though concentrated ownership isn’t as pronounced as it is in the newspaper or broadcast industries. PRODUCING THE MAGAZINE Departments and Staff CirculationAdvertising and SalesProductionEditorialMAGAZINE ECONOMICS Four basic sources of magazine revenues:subscriptionssingle-copy salesadvertisingancillary servicesFEEDBACKAudit Bureau of Circulation (for consumer press)reports average paid circulationrate base (minimum guaranteed circulation)circulation in last six monthsnumber of visits, or “hits,” on magazine’s web siteBusiness Publication Audit (for business press) Magazine Audiences Two categories which concern advertisers:primary (total circulation figure)pass-along (primary + secondary readers)Magazine Reader Profile:Readers tend to be more affluent, educated, and “joiners”94% of us read at least one magazine a monthAdults browse though about ten magazines a month 28% of adults spend < 25 minutes with magazines dailyEnd of Chapter 5Magazines