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The most conflicted relationship in magazine publishing is the one be-
tween advertising and editorial. Journalism professors and old-school edi-
tors preach the separation of church and state, struggling day in and day
out to remain objective in the face of financial sponsorship.
Yet it’s hard to ignore the fact that magazines depend on advertisers to stay
alive. Though subscriptions and newsstand sales remain crucial, staggering
circulation costs dilute this income. So unless readers are willing to sup-
port the magazine’s cause with expensive annual subscriptions (as in the
case of
Ms.
and
Adbusters,
socially aware titles that shun advertising’s in-
fluence), advertising is a necessary ally—or evil, depending on how you
look at it.
Advertising Age
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With ads, magazines constantly have to draw the line
in the sand between customer satisfaction and editorial
integrity. But without ads, they may be forced to cut
back on the resources used to establish that integrity.
Look, for instance, at the case of new economy business
magazines such as
Red Herring,
which was forced to
lay off reporters, designers, and editors when its high-
tech advertisers started tightening their purse strings.
One issue rarely addressed in journalism schools is the
effect advertising has on a magazine’s look and feel.
Art directors at trade magazines and smaller journals
grapple with this problem often, usually because their
sales teams tend to sell a large number of fractional
ads, or ads that take up only a quarter or half of the
page, to lower-budget advertisers in order to serve a
targeted industry or niche. But even high-powered ti-
tles face the concern. What happens when a valued
advertiser places an ugly ad? When an ad contrasts
sharply with the layout on the facing page?
The designers and art directors interviewed for this
book differ in their approach to the advertising-design
challenge. Some develop elaborate philosophies about
it; others deal with it on the fly. But they are almost all
alike in that they rarely leave the result to chance.
Advertising’s Influence
left, below and opposite
Sometimes the reason is
intentional maneuvering
by the art department,
and sometimes advertis-
ers take their cue from
Blue’s
design. Whatever
the case, ads and layouts
have a way of coming to-
gether harmoniously.
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Many designers, at the very least, work a glance-over
of the magazine into their production process. This in-
volves close cooperation with the ad production de-
partment, not only because ads often come in at the
last minute and are often placed in layouts last but
also because the placement of ads is a sensitive issue.
“We look at the ads and see how they’ll look against
an article,” says Dina Gan, editor in chief of
A.
“Some
companies only want to be in the front of the book.
Advertisers have their own concerns. Some ads aren’t
the prettiest in the world, and if they’re really bad, we
may request a different ad.”
Other editors monitor ads closely so they can
staunchly defend the magazine’s brand.
*Surface,
for
example, positions itself as a magazine that’s so far
ahead of the design and fashion curve that it doesn’t
need to stoop to trendy or novelty concepts. “We need
to set a certain tone in order to stay in the black,” says
Riley John-donnell, the magazine’s co-publisher and
co-creative director.
If an advertiser submits an ad that’s not in line with
this tone, the magazine may turn it away. “We draw
the line at anything offensive,” says John-donnell.
“Those kinds of things are visually not helping the
client. Sometimes younger advertisers go for shock
value, either visually or contentwise. They’re trying to
be cutting edge.”
Staying Involved in Ad Placement
left and below Some
magazines, like
A,
are
careful to maintain the
separation of church and
state—that is, editorial
and advertising. But de-
signers keep their eyes
open to make sure ads
reflect the quality of the
magazine’s design.
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In the case of
Yoga Journal,
revising the ad layout pol-
icy helped the magazine take a big step toward rein-
venting a visual brand. The 25-year-old magazine had
evolved into a new-age journal with dozens of frac-
tionals—many of which were black-and-white ads for
environmental products or health foods—scattered
throughout the book. As part of the redesign, art direc-
tor Jonathan Wieder elected to move all fractionals to
the back of the book. “This allows us to group the best-
looking ads toward the front,” he says.
This policy contributed to the magazine’s attempt, with
its elegant redesign, to develop a broader consumer
scope. “It wouldn’t do us any good to backslide in
terms of design,” Wieder says. “A number of advertis-
ers have even created new ads and come up with new
ideas based on our new look.”
left and below
Yoga
Journal
makes an effort
to use attractive full-
page ads in the front of
the book, reserving the
back for fractionals.
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Wieder isn’t the only designer who sees advertisers
changing their strategies based on the magazine’s
look. “Advertisers imitate us, sometimes,” says John-
donnell of
*Surface.
“They want to turn in something
that represents them well in the context of our design.”
In truth, the lines between advertising and editorial
are increasingly blurred. Greater competition and the
struggle to make a profit have brought the camps
closer together. The invention of new revenue models
on the Web also prompted change. In the race to make
Working in Harmony
money, suddenly the fences didn’t matter as much, and
online content constantly was being packaged and sold.
This, for example, is why contract magazines—editori-
ally driven publications created to promote interna-
tional brands—constitute the fastest-growing division
of magazine publishing these days. It’s also why some
designers look to the ads to help establish the overall
picture of the magazine.
Blue
editor in chief Amy Schrier makes no bones about
artists sometimes playing off the ads they run. “We
really do think about where they best integrate into
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