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Magazines

Magazine ad pages slide another 8 percent

Ad pages are off 8.6 percent through the third quarter

By Diego Vasquez

October 19, 2012

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It may well be that the magazine business's worst days, when titles were reporting drops of 30 percent or more in ad pages each quarter, are in the past as the media industry continues its long climb back from the worst of the recession.

But the declines, if they've eased, are still severe. In place of the hemorrhaging, what has set in is a pattern of steady declines each quarter, typically in the range of 8 percent.

So it's been this year. Ad pages were off 8.2 percent in first quarter, 8.5 percent in second quarter and now 8 percent in third quarter for a year-to-date decline of 8.6 percent to 110,483.48 pages, according to new data from the Publishers Information Bureau

That pattern set in in fourth quarter last year, when pages fell 8 percent.

While some magazine categories are doing well and seeing solid gains, such as fashion, many more are in decline, and they're unlikely to ever come back.

One timely case in point is the newsweekly category, which once numbered three then shrunk to two when U.S. News & World Report went online-only four years ago. Today the category shrunk to one, Time, when Newsweek announced it is ending its print publication.

Though some of the ad dollars that once went to print ads are moving to the magazines’ digital properties, they are not expected to make up for print declines.

Just four of 24 magazine categories tracked by Media Life are seeing gains this year: fashion, shelter, business/financial and Hispanic.

Outdoor/recreation saw the biggest declines, off 36 percent, in part due to the shutdown of the print editions of Motorboating and Power and Motoryachting, leading to tough comparisons to last year.

Automotive Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
AUTOMOBILE MAGAZINE	42,886,876	43,904,743	-2.3	375.61	407.80	-7.9
AUTOWEEK	24,352,280	24,486,477	-0.5	676.64	693.82	-2.5
CAR AND DRIVER	113,172,405	109,895,193	3.0	561.82	569.31	-1.3
HOT ROD	37,544,932	44,584,467	-15.8	339.04	410.31	-17.4
MOTOR TREND	104,502,506	94,608,742	10.5	538.47	518.17	3.9
ROAD & TRACK	56,568,823	61,769,302	-8.4	519.57	587.74	-11.6
TOTALS	379,027,822	379,248,924	-0.1	3,011.15	3,187.15	-5.5
Source: PIB

Entertainment/Celebrity Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY	140,965,642	145,465,540	-3.1	757.86	815.72	-7.1
IN TOUCH WEEKLY	46,144,793	70,914,371	-34.9	474.99	610.79	-22.2
LIFE & STYLE WEEKLY	19,301,595	22,317,374	-13.5	358.19	373.21	-4.0
OK WEEKLY	60,383,770	65,918,695	-8.4	880.16	801.62	9.8
PEOPLE	708,745,568	739,950,442	-4.2	2,259.38	2,498.84	-9.6
STAR	111,752,964	125,180,334	-10.7	941.82	1,011.81	-6.9
TV GUIDE	82,898,036	81,253,545	2.0	505.39	536.86	-5.9
US WEEKLY	263,289,973	286,880,604	-8.2	1,221.26	1,398.70	-12.7
TOTALS	1,433,482,341	1,537,880,905	-6.8	7,399.05	8,047.55	-8.1
Source: PIB

Music Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
ROLLING STONE	121,997,158	130,670,196	-6.6	618.21	701.52	-11.9
SPIN	9,711,273	16,351,521	-40.6	170.73	286.51	-40.4
TOTALS	131,708,431	147,021,717	-10.4	788.94	988.03	-20.2
Source: PIB

Teen magazines Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
SEVENTEEN	74,139,532	79,411,494	-6.6	503.98	565.00	-10.8
TEEN VOGUE	74,284,608	69,954,939	6.2	588.89	585.15	0.6
TOTALS	148,424,140	149,366,433	-0.6	1,092.87	1,150.15	-5.0
Source: PIB

Fashion Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
ELLE	261,404,866	234,904,302	11.3	1,744.28	1,641.68	6.2
HARPER'S BAZAAR	157,166,192	135,889,354	15.7	1,214.03	1,100.04	10.4
IN STYLE	309,068,730	277,789,037	11.3	1,907.03	1,813.52	5.2
LUCKY	77,265,154	93,188,636	-17.1	618.77	782.01	-20.9
MARIE CLAIRE	156,765,394	125,458,421	25.0	1,163.07	971.34	19.7
PEOPLE STYLE WATCH	75,326,026	68,304,951	10.3	916.93	900.26	1.9
TOWN & COUNTRY	47,890,797	50,006,922	-4.2	548.40	537.89	2.0
VOGUE	317,307,598	288,926,975	9.8	1,951.17	1,860.72	4.9
W	82,340,297	73,655,926	11.8	825.81	775.33	6.5
TOTALS	1,484,535,054	1,348,124,524	10.1	10,889.49	10,382.79	4.9
Source: PIB

Travel Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
ARTHUR FROMMERS BDGT TRVL	8,926,044	14,340,777	-37.8	143.56	242.17	-40.7
CONDE NAST TRAVELER	86,229,684	83,458,978	3.3	670.17	677.74	-1.1
DEPARTURES	45,090,901	40,138,267	12.3	480.04	450.99	6.4
ENDLESS VACATION	6,981,600	7,748,214	-9.9	79.19	91.87	-13.8
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRVLR	20,929,303	23,214,311	-9.8	241.44	281.88	-14.3
TRAVEL+ LEISURE	85,116,216	89,992,939	-5.4	674.76	757.10	-10.9
TOTALS	253,273,748	258,893,486	-2.2	2,289.16	2,501.75	-8.5
Source: PIB

General Interest & Lifestyle Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
AARP-THE MAGAZINE	111,101,440	122,205,370	-9.1	175.03	201.80	-13.3
ATLANTIC MONTHLY THE	22,149,375	21,875,393	1.3	305.09	328.02	-7.0
GUIDEPOSTS	19,468,048	25,548,153	-23.8	268.62	322.71	-16.8
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC	53,796,766	71,667,830	-24.9	227.22	298.47	-23.9
NEW YORK MAGAZINE	131,809,720	134,917,024	-2.3	1,624.44	1,735.98	-6.4
NEW YORKER	112,714,265	114,263,926	-1.4	741.92	789.15	-6.0
READER'S DIGEST	127,981,319	110,226,206	16.1	581.08	523.26	11.0
SMITHSONIAN	49,846,442	45,523,448	9.5	290.69	292.67	-0.7
SOUTHERN LIVING	138,774,409	133,152,855	4.2	664.38	691.04	-3.9
SUNSET	50,205,773	51,779,451	-3.0	404.79	446.61	-9.4
TEXAS MONTHLY	49,645,946	46,610,556	6.5	1,280.82	1,200.68	6.7
VANITY FAIR	191,969,935	178,530,244	7.5	1,025.97	1,013.91	1.2
TOTALS	1,059,463,438	1,056,300,456	0.3	7,590.05	7,844.3	-3.2
Source: PIB

Parenting Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
AMERICAN BABY	65,433,780	76,031,603	-13.9	298.91	366.34	-18.4
BABY TALK	48,418,540	46,408,382	4.3	268.49	274.33	-2.1
FAMILY FUN	63,634,625	74,442,095	-14.5	323.91	399.26	-18.9
PARENTING	71,949,480	74,709,068	-3.7	495.94	540.07	-8.2
PARENTING SCHOOL YEARS	23,842,461	25,200,402	-5.4	435.25	483.79	-10.0
PARENTS	159,809,802	167,884,643	-4.8	863.72	942.21	-8.3
TOTALS	433,088,688	464,676,193	-6.8	2,686.22	3,006	-10.6
Source: PIB

Personal finance Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
BARRONS	43,497,129	44,215,300	-1.6	846.95	909.61	-6.9
KIPLINGERS PERSNL FINANCE	12,237,443	16,443,019	-25.6	178.83	248.47	-28.0
MONEY	79,890,597	80,897,796	-1.2	351.29	374.71	-6.3
SMARTMONEY	25,605,545	24,505,210	4.5	253.48	252.55	0.4
TOTALS	161,230,714	166,061,325	-2.9	1,630.55	1,785.34	-8.7
Source: PIB

Newsweeklies Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
ECONOMIST	84,636,492	85,205,226	-0.7	1,260.58	1,347.07	-6.4
NEWSWEEK	99,440,096	93,930,642	5.9	508.85	501.52	1.5
THE WEEK	25,977,391	34,232,895	-24.1	363.25	508.83	-28.6
TIME	257,346,260	291,185,588	-11.6	783.56	955.39	-18.0
TOTALS	467,400,239	504,554,351	-7.4	2,916.24	3,312.81	-12.0
Source: PIB

Women's Service Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
BETTER HOMES & GARDENS	523,369,822	530,805,862	-1.4	998.34	1,055.69	-5.4
FAMILY CIRCLE	263,093,396	279,393,972	-5.8	882.49	1,025.17	-13.9
FIRST FOR WOMEN	22,832,899	25,671,564	-11.1	303.09	359.74	-15.7
GOOD HOUSEKEEPING	338,865,564	370,893,723	-8.6	855.22	1,003.04	-14.7
LADIES' HOME JOURNAL	122,658,811	155,138,145	-20.9	513.00	677.28	-24.3
MARTHA STEWART LIVING	87,833,166	124,110,026	-29.2	497.61	732.61	-32.1
MORE	74,028,203	90,203,729	-17.9	452.99	575.67	-21.3
O-THE OPRAH MAGAZINE	134,184,764	148,098,963	-9.4	848.26	952.48	-10.9
REAL SIMPLE	169,621,862	188,264,554	-9.9	895.69	1,049.09	-14.6
REDBOOK	138,542,761	162,829,905	-14.9	784.39	974.03	-19.5
WOMAN'S DAY	226,288,828	273,954,832	-17.4	903.24	974.59	-7.3
WOMANS WORLD	22,174,579	23,048,859	-3.8	236.19	252.21	-6.4
WOMEN'S HEALTH	78,663,723	71,567,646	9.9	428.12	412.07	3.9
WORKING MOTHER	15,855,793	20,746,793	-23.6	208.37	277.13	-24.8
TOTALS	2,218,014,171	2,464,728,573	-10.0	8,807	10,320.80	-14.7
Source: PIB

Fan Sports Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
ESPN MAGAZINE	182,439,286	211,485,708	-13.7	763.51	914.53	-16.5
SPORTING NEWS	3,179,616	13,810,440	-77.0	52.50	242.74	-78.4
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED	412,360,921	409,351,786	0.7	1,003.50	1,053.85	-4.8
TOTALS	597,979,823	634,647,934	-5.8	1,819.51	2,211.12	-17.7
Source: PIB

Personal Sports Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
BICYCLING	28,607,361	29,424,729	-2.8	393.76	427.16	-7.8
GOLF DIGEST	91,505,910	101,769,781	-10.1	590.85	687.12	-14.0
GOLF MAGAZINE	127,542,643	122,823,369	3.8	624.26	656.79	-5.0
GOLF WORLD	24,078,522	30,325,376	-20.6	572.35	765.71	-25.3
RUNNERS WORLD	68,474,331	65,411,981	4.7	488.80	494.95	-1.2
SKI	6,468,794	6,917,461	-6.5	110.88	123.16	-10.0
TENNIS	10,703,320	13,702,620	-21.9	182.42	246.82	-26.1
TOTALS	357,380,881	370,375,317	-3.5	2,963.32	3,401.71	-12.9
Source: PIB

Weekend magazines Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
AMERICAN PROFILE	168,942,402	170,192,582	-0.7	359.18	358.05	0.3
DASH	33,085,088	25,052,400	32.1	92.89	74.08	25.4
LOS ANGELES TIMES MAG	4,835,406	8,847,691	-45.3	159.49	286.83	-44.4
NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE	168,010,069	173,682,182	-3.3	1,431.41	1,472.79	-2.8
PARADE	372,546,057	402,506,040	-7.4	343.99	401.64	-14.4
RELISH	75,559,618	88,704,024	-14.8	92.47	108.38	-14.7
SPRY	31,982,696	37,597,607	-14.9	69.56	82.77	-16.0
USA WEEKEND	269,716,829	273,589,452	-1.4	352.89	371.03	-4.9
TOTALS	1,124,678,164	1,180,171,979	-4.7	2,901.88	3,155.57	-8.0
Source: PIB

Men's Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
DETAILS	35,631,057	33,756,018	5.6	469.19	465.77	0.7
ESQUIRE	75,491,393	75,006,608	0.6	559.74	582.38	-3.9
GQ	126,085,441	121,321,704	3.9	783.19	790.42	-0.9
MAXIM	78,148,477	96,114,326	-18.7	273.45	353.01	-22.5
MEN'S FITNESS	33,787,648	39,273,940	-14.0	428.80	511.03	-16.1
MEN'S HEALTH	91,377,657	99,876,487	-8.5	469.77	526.50	-10.8
MEN'S JOURNAL	61,172,799	58,349,102	4.8	550.23	553.96	-0.7
PLAYBOY	31,675,778	32,857,020	-3.6	288.46	286.12	0.8
TOTALS	533,370,250	556,555,205	-4.2	3,822.83	4,069.19	-6.1
Source: PIB

Shelter Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST	88,982,526	76,255,588	16.7	696.11	620.63	12.2
COUNTRY LIVING	76,559,320	76,412,200	0.2	451.51	471.52	-4.2
DWELL	18,861,066	18,937,024	-0.4	425.93	450.75	-5.5
ELLE DECOR	63,825,890	63,051,180	1.2	736.14	764.58	-3.7
THIS OLD HOUSE	36,844,703	40,858,287	-9.8	364.29	425.67	-14.4
TRADITIONAL HOME	61,706,505	52,996,554	16.4	396.65	353.56	12.2
VERANDA	28,080,602	23,321,339	20.4	434.12	371.44	16.9
TOTALS	374,860,612	351,832,172	6.5	3,504.75	3,458.15	1.3
Source: PIB

Bridal Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
BRIDAL GUIDE	51,470,993	59,735,594	-13.8	1,290.80	1,366.13	-5.5
BRIDE'S	159,335,388	172,225,826	-7.5	1,791.92	2,017.10	-11.2
MARTHA WEDDINGS	48,518,900	38,179,351	27.1	1,165.94	954.47	22.2
TOTALS	259,325,281	270,140,771	-4.0	4,248.66	4,337.70	-2.1
Source: PIB

Epicurean Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
BON APPETIT	67,914,598	63,915,266	6.3	436.69	429.07	1.8
COOKING LIGHT	84,679,671	94,958,994	-10.8	657.09	782.92	-16.1
EVERY DAY W/ RACHAEL RAY	59,549,284	58,922,597	1.1	388.05	401.15	-3.3
EVERYDAY FOOD	14,679,900	15,599,513	-5.9	211.50	231.73	-8.7
FINE COOKING	1,473,107	1,111,366	32.5	55.22	42.21	30.8
FOOD & WINE	64,149,363	64,182,820	-0.1	656.49	696.79	-5.8
FOOD NETWORK MAGAZINE	52,685,748	41,320,156	27.5	660.75	563.78	17.2
SAVEUR	9,952,009	12,245,583	-18.7	202.59	264.07	-23.3
TOTALS	355,083,680	352,256,295	0.8	3,268.38	3,411.72	-4.2
Source: PIB

Business/Finance Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
BLOOMBERG BUSINESS WEEK	149,145,295	147,662,449	1.0	1,000.97	1,006.73	-0.6
ENTREPRENEUR	52,209,085	58,242,755	-10.4	601.38	674.08	-10.8
FAST COMPANY	36,091,326	29,836,940	21.0	400.42	346.33	15.6
FORBES	179,085,616	153,804,565	16.4	1,191.69	1,060.48	12.4
FORTUNE	146,052,255	140,628,586	3.9	1,025.45	1,049.76	-2.3
HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW	12,575,023	11,994,570	4.8	276.10	274.77	0.5
INC.	35,156,333	36,351,863	-3.3	428.00	454.51	-5.8
TOTALS	610,314,933	578,521,728	5.5	4,924.01	4,866.66	1.2
Source: PIB

Science and Technology Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
POPULAR MECHANICS	73,463,141	79,079,504	-7.1	506.93	570.03	-11.1
POPULAR SCIENCE	51,253,013	59,756,539	-14.2	355.42	439.07	-19.1
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN	11,418,350	12,796,505	-10.8	145.49	175.97	-17.3
TECHNOLOGY REVIEW	2,376,328	2,294,665	3.6	87.31	87.03	0.3
WIRED	66,028,969	66,234,457	-0.3	574.83	622.48	-7.7
TOTALS	204,539,801	220,161,670	-7.1	1,669.98	1,894.58	-11.9
Source: PIB

Outdoor & Recreation Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
BASSMASTER	0	7,882,611	-100.0	0.00	191.80	-100.0
BOATING	16,370,845	13,414,677	22.0	384.92	325.48	18.3
CYCLE WORLD	15,575,286	17,605,577	-11.5	456.07	456.90	-0.2
FIELD & STREAM	56,207,459	57,368,364	-2.0	363.75	402.31	-9.6
FLYING	9,148,355	9,750,815	-6.2	324.20	363.46	-10.8
MOTORBOATING	0	12,241,885	-100.0	0.00	335.97	-100.0
OUTDOOR LIFE	23,010,809	24,330,065	-5.4	248.29	292.25	-15.0
OUTSIDE MAGAZINE	52,506,618	56,920,691	-7.8	490.93	554.97	-11.5
POWER & MOTORYACHT	0	22,940,420	-100.0	0.00	787.42	-100.0
SALT WATER SPORTSMAN	11,591,775	11,655,061	-0.5	306.93	315.71	-2.8
TOTALS	184,411,147	234,110,166	-21.2	2,575.09	4,026.27	-36.0
Source: PIB

African American Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
BLACK ENTERPRISE	20,097,387	21,410,807	-6.1	427.27	456.49	-6.4
EBONY	34,419,153	24,886,547	38.3	505.66	384.56	31.5
ESSENCE	78,710,310	89,506,631	-12.1	757.34	914.78	-17.2
JET	8,675,713	9,454,963	-8.2	253.40	286.64	-11.6
TOTALS	141,902,563	145,258,948	-2.3	1,943.67	2,042.47	-4.8
Source: PIB

Hispanic Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
LATINA	21,712,054	20,890,881	3.9	445.59	434.88	2.5
PEOPLE EN ESPANOL	53,805,436	43,755,143	23.0	707.33	609.86	16.0
SER PADRES	15,688,712	10,815,831	45.1	150.27	130.87	14.8
SIEMPRE MUJER	14,270,324	11,836,445	20.6	211.29	202.60	4.3
TOTALS	105,476,526	87,298,300	20.8	1,514.48	1,378.21	9.9
Source: PIB

Health/Fitness Jan.-Sept. 2012 vs. 2011
Titles	2012 $s	2011 $s	% chnge	'12 pages	'11 pages	% chnge
FIT PREGNANCY	20,098,296	21,038,584	-4.5	307.93	334.12	-7.8
FITNESS	98,635,826	97,123,287	1.6	627.82	639.77	-1.9
NATURAL HEALTH	11,890,905	11,098,144	7.1	236.81	232.86	1.7
ORGANIC GARDENING	4,558,700	4,234,042	7.7	161.33	162.21	-0.5
PREVENTION	69,188,252	87,232,170	-20.7	448.60	591.23	-24.1
WEIGHT WATCHERS	28,150,621	33,624,338	-16.3	359.48	449.96	-20.1
TOTALS	232,522,600	254,350,565	-8.6	2,141.97	2,410.15	-11.2
Source: PIB