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now feeling the hurt
Join big titles in decline; first-half pages off 11%
By Jeff Bercovici
Magazine people and other media watchers hardly need to be reminded what a dismal year it’s been for so many of the industry’s biggest moneymakers, especially business magazines, newsweeklies and personal finance titles.
What has been less remarked upon, however, is how grim the picture is turning out to be for special interest and niche magazines.
With their endemic advertising pools and close relationships with retailers and manufacturers, specialty magazines initially seemed better situated to weather a downturn in the ad economy than mass-audience and general-interest titles.
But with the year halfway over, special interest magazines have been among those most bruised by the ad market’s tumble.
Golf titles, outdoor sports books and a wide range of other hobbyist magazines have seen large page and ad dollar declines, according to the most recent report from the Publishers Information Bureau.
Overall, ad pages for the magazine industry were off 11 percent in the first half of the year, while ad revenue was down 2.9 percent.
But despite early predictions that the ad economy would right itself in time for the third quarter, the rate of decline appears to be accelerating, at least through June.
Total ad revenue for the month was down 8.2 percent versus June 2000, and ad pages were off 18.6 percent.
The field of golf magazines has seen its share of turmoil in the past year, with Time Inc. buying Golf Magazine and Condé Nast taking over Golf Digest.
Both titles experienced double-digit page losses through June. Golf Digest’s ad pages fell 14.6 percent to 691.26, and its revenue dropped 4.1 percent to 81.6 million, while Golf Magazine’s pages were off 15.4 percent to 725.9 and its revenue totaled $65.3 million, down 5.9 percent from first-half 2000.
Percentage-wise, Golf World fared even worse, with pages falling 22.1 percent to 668.96 and revenue slipping 6.2 percent to $15.4 million.
Meredith’s Golf for Women also suffered declines: Pages were off 17.7 to 177.85 through June, and ad dollars fell 4.8 percent to $7 million.
Bucking the trend was American Express Publishing’s T&L Golf, which was able to boost pages 9 percent to 268.21 and increase revenue 30.3 percent to $11 million.
Magazines dedicated to enjoyment of the great outdoors also by and large took a beating in the first half of the year.
The three main hunting and fishing titles—Field & Stream, Outdoor Life and Sports Afield—all watched page and dollar levels plunge 25 percent or more.
Sports Afield, which returned to the traditional "hooks and bullets" format with a repositioning last year, suffered the biggest revenue declines, with ad dollars falling 49.2 percent to $3.4 million as pages dropped 26.2 to 124.85.
Outside magazine, which focuses on the gentler aspects of roughing it, was down 24 percent in pages to 447.67, and ad dollars dropped 13 percent to $26 million.
Other enthusiast titles that saw ad page drops of at least 10 percent included Bassmaster, Bicycling, Garden Design, Gardener, Motorboating, Runner’s World and Skin Diver.
|
Entertainment/Celebrity |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
ENTRTNMNT WEEKLY |
882.26 |
972.61 |
-9.3 |
96.09 |
102.64 |
-6.4 |
|
MOVIELINE |
173.33 |
181.83 |
-4.7 |
3.91 |
3.73 |
4.8 |
|
PEOPLE WEEKLY |
1780.81 |
1937.98 |
-8.1 |
319.76 |
330.00 |
-3.1 |
|
PREMIERE |
206.37 |
309.64 |
-33.4 |
10.39 |
13.11 |
-20.8 |
|
US WEEKLY |
458.99 |
437.92 |
4.8 |
26.69 |
24.37 |
9.5 |
|
VANITY FAIR |
847.61 |
896.02 |
-5.4 |
62.66 |
60.17 |
4.1 |
|
Totals |
4349.37 |
4736.00 |
-8.16 |
519.50 |
534.02 |
-2.72 |
| *Some titles may have published more or fewer issues in 2001 than in 2000. | ||||||
|
Source: PIB |
||||||
|
Music |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
ROLLING STONE |
632.12 |
853.53 |
-25.9 |
64.14 |
75.11 |
-14.6 |
|
SPIN |
453.6 |
525.34 |
-13.7 |
18.97 |
20.82 |
-8.9 |
|
SOURCE |
684.09 |
732.17 |
-6.6 |
15.59 |
14.53 |
7.3 |
|
VIBE |
531.35 |
566.31 |
-6.2 |
30.93 |
28.64 |
8.0 |
|
Totals |
2301.16 |
2677.35 |
-14.1 |
129.64 |
139.10 |
-6.8 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Women's Health |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
FITNESS |
314.31 |
302.77 |
3.8 |
21.79 |
19.19 |
13.6 |
|
SELF |
554.45 |
608.83 |
-8.9 |
39.07 |
34.25 |
14.1 |
|
SHAPE MAGAZINE |
437.73 |
426.22 |
2.7 |
37.20 |
32.71 |
13.7 |
|
Totals |
1306.49 |
1337.82 |
-2.3 |
98.06 |
86.15 |
13.8 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Teen |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
COSMO |
259.08 |
240.39 |
7.8 |
13.25 |
8.86 |
49.5 |
|
SEVNTEEN |
616.02 |
655.9 |
-6.1 |
51.04 |
49.36 |
3.4 |
|
TEEN |
231.14 |
275.17 |
-16.0 |
18.53 |
20.20 |
-8.2 |
|
TEEN PEOPLE |
487.23 |
486.45 |
0.2 |
35.14 |
31.22 |
12.6 |
|
YM |
351.69 |
250.06 |
40.6 |
30.87 |
20.62 |
49.7 |
|
Totals |
1945.16 |
1907.97 |
1.9 |
148.83 |
130.26 |
14.26 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Women's Service/Beauty |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
ALLURE |
552.78 |
551.67 |
0.2 |
30.67 |
26.60 |
15.3 |
|
COSMO |
968.55 |
1013.82 |
-4.5 |
134.87 |
123.38 |
9.3 |
|
GLAMOUR |
751.98 |
890.87 |
-15.6 |
71.22 |
77.03 |
-7.5 |
|
JANE |
401.29 |
369.95 |
8.5 |
15.23 |
12.25 |
24.3 |
|
MDMSLLE |
382.45 |
469.37 |
-18.5 |
23.83 |
26.96 |
-11.6 |
|
MARIE CLAIRE |
732.48 |
723.63 |
1.2 |
44.98 |
39.13 |
15.0 |
|
Totals |
3.789.53 |
4.019.31 |
-5.7 |
320.80 |
305.34 |
5.1 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Fashion |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
ELLE |
932.01 |
1010.2 |
-7.7 |
60.48 |
60.20 |
0.5 |
|
HARPER'S BAZAAR |
817.7 |
765.21 |
6.9 |
51.50 |
43.58 |
18.2 |
|
VOGUE |
1362.2 |
1403.39 |
-2.9 |
89.26 |
86.03 |
3.8 |
|
W |
940.14 |
973.59 |
-3.4 |
56.74 |
50.28 |
12.8 |
|
Totals |
4.052.05 |
4.152.39 |
-2.4 |
257.97 |
240.08 |
7.5 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Travel |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER |
744.54 |
772.55 |
-3.6 |
40.72 |
38.45 |
5.9 |
|
TRAVEL HOLIDAY |
473.47 |
360.89 |
31.2 |
20.68 |
15.86 |
30.4 |
|
TRAVEL+ LEISURE |
842.36 |
884.24 |
-4.7 |
55.90 |
55.97 |
-0.1 |
|
Totals |
2.060.37 |
2.017.68 |
2.12 |
117.31 |
110.29 |
6.36 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Personal Finance |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
IND'L INVESTOR |
218.18 |
331.64 |
-34.2 |
4.97 |
8.44 |
-41.2 |
|
KPLNGRS PERSNL FINANCE |
381.98 |
411.02 |
-7.1 |
23.83 |
25.06 |
-4.9 |
|
MONEY |
514.17 |
698.18 |
-26.4 |
67.94 |
83.79 |
-18.9 |
|
MUTUAL FUNDS |
296.89 |
373.55 |
-20.5 |
18.93 |
21.99 |
-13.9 |
|
SMART MONEY |
451.19 |
608.67 |
-25.9 |
25.98 |
30.62 |
-15.2 |
|
WORTH |
291.58 |
407.96 |
-28.5 |
15.15 |
19.75 |
-23.3 |
|
Totals |
2.153.99 |
2.831.02 |
-23.9 |
156.80 |
189.66 |
-17.3 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Newsweeklies |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
NEWS |
878.33 |
1124.97 |
-21.9 |
161.36 |
202.52 |
-20.3 |
|
TIME |
1140.69 |
1454.68 |
-21.6 |
265.48 |
319.46 |
-16.9 |
|
U S NEWS & WORLD REPORT |
664.28 |
840.69 |
-21.0 |
86.87 |
100.70 |
-13.7 |
|
ECNMIST |
1509 |
1656.58 |
-8.9 |
35.81 |
34.84 |
2.8 |
|
Totals |
4.192.30 |
5.076.92 |
-17.4 |
549.51 |
657.53 |
-16.43 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Women's Service |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
BETTER HOMES & GARDENS |
880.54 |
989.03 |
-11.0 |
237.28 |
240.46 |
-1.3 |
|
FAMILY CIRCLE |
624.01 |
665.01 |
-6.2 |
124.97 |
123.50 |
1.2 |
|
GOOD HOUSE KEEPING |
746.22 |
709.55 |
5.2 |
150.95 |
129.55 |
16.5 |
|
LADIES' HOME JOURNAL |
604.76 |
671.28 |
-9.9 |
93.24 |
95.34 |
-2.2 |
|
REDBOOK |
635.45 |
687 |
-7.5 |
57.94 |
58.29 |
-0.6 |
|
WOMAN'S DAY |
678.69 |
693.75 |
-2.2 |
112.52 |
107.14 |
5.0 |
|
Totals |
4.169.67 |
4.415.62 |
-5.6 |
776.90 |
754.28 |
3.0 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Sports |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
ESPN MAGAZINE |
612.76 |
753.36 |
-18.7 |
57.80 |
52.89 |
9.3 |
|
SPORTING NEWS |
248.5 |
381.51 |
-34.9 |
7.37 |
11.17 |
-34.0 |
|
SPORTS ILLSTRTD |
1143.76 |
1295.84 |
-11.7 |
274.54 |
295.18 |
-7.0 |
|
Totals |
2.005.02 |
2.430.71 |
-17.5 |
339.71 |
359.24 |
-5.4 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Men's |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
DETAILS |
347.38 |
295.19 |
17.7 |
12.05 |
11.69 |
3.1 |
|
ESQUIRE |
447.32 |
470.38 |
-4.9 |
28.45 |
26.00 |
9.5 |
|
FHM |
214.83 |
177.39 |
21.1 |
9.94 |
2.44 |
306.6 |
|
GEAR |
167.33 |
167.21 |
0.1 |
5.20 |
3.91 |
33.1 |
|
GQ |
753.55 |
813.24 |
-7.3 |
45.85 |
41.52 |
10.4 |
|
MAXIM |
536.99 |
512.79 |
4.7 |
68.44 |
43.69 |
56.7 |
|
MENS HEALTH |
362.16 |
354.41 |
2.2 |
34.71 |
32.04 |
8.3 |
|
MENS JOURNAL |
454.79 |
516.23 |
-11.9 |
25.65 |
24.90 |
3.0 |
|
PLAYBOY |
342.39 |
374.47 |
-8.6 |
38.04 |
37.31 |
2.0 |
|
STUFF FOR MEN |
271.85 |
159.16 |
70.8 |
13.93 |
5.15 |
170.4 |
|
Totals |
3.898.59 |
3.840.47 |
1.5 |
282.26 |
228.65 |
23.4 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Sunday Magazines |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
LOS ANGELES TIMES |
251.81 |
248.3 |
1.4 |
9.80 |
8.81 |
11.2 |
|
NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE |
1576.2 |
1722.44 |
-8.5 |
93.79 |
98.01 |
-4.3 |
|
PARADE |
307 |
313.73 |
-2.1 |
282.29 |
278.47 |
1.4 |
|
USA WEEKEND |
291.29 |
294.04 |
-0.9 |
153.08 |
145.64 |
5.1 |
|
Totals |
2.426.30 |
2.578.51 |
-5.9 |
538.96 |
530.93 |
1.5 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Outdoor |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
OUTDOOR LIFE |
166.26 |
236.9 |
-29.8 |
10.26 |
13.77 |
-25.5 |
|
OUTSIDE MAGAZINE |
447.67 |
588.81 |
-24.0 |
25.96 |
29.85 |
-13.0 |
|
FIELD & STREAM |
227.6 |
345.44 |
-34.1 |
20.45 |
26.88 |
-23.9 |
|
SPORTS AFIELD |
124.85 |
169.14 |
-26.2 |
3.41 |
6.73 |
-49.2 |
|
Totals |
966.38 |
1,340.29 |
-27.9 |
60.08 |
77.22 |
-22.2 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Golf |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
GOLF DIGEST |
691.26 |
809.03 |
-14.6 |
81.60 |
85.05 |
-4.1 |
|
GOLF FOR WOMEN |
177.85 |
216.22 |
-17.7 |
7.01 |
7.36 |
-4.8 |
|
GOLF MAGAZINE |
725.69 |
857.41 |
-15.4 |
65.32 |
69.39 |
-5.9 |
|
GOLF WORLD |
668.96 |
858.62 |
-22.1 |
15.43 |
16.45 |
-6.2 |
| T&L GOLF | 268.21 | 246.17 | 9.0 | 10.95 | 8.40 | 30.3 |
|
Totals |
2,531.97 |
2,987.45 |
-15.2 |
180.31 |
186.66 |
-3.4 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Automotive |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
AUTO |
362.34 |
473.38 |
-23.5 |
25.36 |
30.87 |
-17.8 |
|
AUTO |
691.08 |
759.97 |
-9.1 |
11.79 |
13.17 |
-10.5 |
|
CAR AND DRIVER |
504.63 |
605.99 |
-16.7 |
49.29 |
55.68 |
-11.5 |
|
HOT ROD |
466.88 |
426.57 |
9.4 |
16.60 |
16.92 |
-1.9 |
|
MOTOR TREND |
404.99 |
474.92 |
-14.7 |
38.60 |
38.43 |
0.4 |
|
ROAD & TRACK |
539.37 |
577.23 |
-6.6 |
30.77 |
32.88 |
-6.4 |
|
Totals |
2.969.29 |
3.318.06 |
-10.5 |
172.41 |
187.94 |
-8.3 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
|
Business/Finance |
||||||
|
Title |
2001 pages |
2000 pages |
% change |
2001 dollars (millions) |
2000 dollars (millions) |
% change |
|
BUSINESS 2.0 |
683.51 |
1708.52 |
-60.0 |
23.54 |
36.66 |
-35.8 |
|
BUSINESS WEEK |
1995.97 |
2981.21 |
-33.0 |
207.43 |
285.93 |
-27.5 |
|
FAST COMPANY |
512.01 |
968.87 |
-47.2 |
25.55 |
34.83 |
-26.6 |
|
FORBES |
2034.79 |
2603.46 |
-21.8 |
165.36 |
185.48 |
-10.9 |
|
FORTUNE |
2096.24 |
3170.89 |
-33.9 |
173.29 |
240.26 |
-27.9 |
|
INC. |
478.51 |
859.14 |
-44.3 |
35.99 |
63.10 |
-43.0 |
|
INDUSTRY STNDRD |
1083.72 |
4163.98 |
-74.0 |
31.95 |
78.76 |
-59.4 |
|
RED HERRING |
786.47 |
1545.92 |
-49.1 |
30.19 |
32.33 |
-6.6 |
|
SMART BUSINESS |
427.28 |
821.53 |
-48.0 |
27.95 |
43.35 |
-35.5 |
|
Totals |
10098.50 |
18823.52 |
-46.4 |
721.25 |
1000.71 |
-27.9 |
| Source:
PIB |
||||||
July 11, 2001 © 2001 Media Life
-Jeff Bercovici is a staff writer for Media Life
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