Glossy and Greedy: Real Page-Turners (washingtonpost.com)
This month, two prominent magazines have published dishy articles about nefarious doings at other prominent magazines: Vanity Fair covers the absurd rise and pathetic fall of Rosie, while GQ covers the reign of terror unleashed by a despotic honcho at the magazines published by the mega-conglomerate now known as AOL Time Warner.
So, let me issue a warning: This is a magazine review about two magazine stories about magazines. If that's too ridiculously meta for you, quit reading now. My only defense is that these stories help explain why so many of America's big corporate publishers put out such lame mags.
OK, anyone else sick of the mudslinging and name calling going on between publishers? Damn, the industry sounds like a bunch of children! Wine, wine, wine. And no, not the kind of wine you drink. Please, can we get back to the serious business of publishing?
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Radio Ad Spending Rose Sharply in October
Advertising spending for radio increased sharply in October, posting a double-digit percentage gain for the second consecutive month, the Radio Advertising Bureau in New York reported yesterday.
Good news.
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Try these Google News search terms. Save them as Bookmarks/Favorites. Or just access them from this site. They are towards the bottom of the right hand navigation bar. It's a good place to find late breaking advertising news.
advertising
internet advertising
marketing
online advertising
Don't like these? Go to Google News and make up your own. (Save the URL of your search results page)
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On the heels of BMW, Nissan has launched a new "mini-movie" for the rebirth of the Z. Directed by John Bruno (True Lies, The Abyss, Terminator 2), the 6 minute film can be viewed at www.z.com and in a two minute version in movie theaters beginning this week..
Also mentioned in Ad Age via MarketingFix.
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Hef (his handlers) wants more literature and culture in the magazine and less female pictorials. Says men have changed. Really?
Please, Hef, lay off the Viagra
Has the Viagra Gone to Your Head? This is Playboy.
You don't need New York City to create a buzz. Just keep taking "tasteful" nude pictures of hot girls, and guys will talk about it everywhere:
* Nice guys will talk about it around the office water cooler: "Just got the November Playboy, Kristy Swanson is so hot.
* So will drunken guys at the corner bar: "Did you see the (mildly vulgar description of breasts) on Kristy Swanson?"
* As will working guys on the loading dock: "Holy friggin' crap. Dija see dose (extremely vulgar description of breasts) on Kristy Swanson?"
* And rich old men in the executive board room: "Did you fellows see the November Playboy? I'd like to hire an intern with (disgustingly vulgar description of breasts) like Kristy Swanson's."
When each of them gets home, the only mention of Playboy they'll make to the little woman is how captivated they were by the interview with Rams running back Marshall Faulk.
That's how it's worked for 49 years, Hef. Why let some New Yorker with a bad haircut tell you any different?
Is Senility setting in?
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CNN.com - China to lift condom ad ban - Dec. 2, 2002
Alarmed at the prospect of an explosion of HIV/AIDS cases, authorities in China are planning to lift a long-standing ban on condom advertisements, state media has reported.
According to the English-language China Daily newspaper, the ban will be removed early next year as part of an effort to promote safe sex and encourage users to select the right kind of condom for their needs.
Yes, yes, sexually transmitted deseases. All good. But, are we sure this isn't some clandestine effort to slow the population growth of this soon to be very powerful nation?
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Everyone's reporting it so I guess I will too.
statesman.com | Business
The European Union voted Monday to outlaw tobacco ads in newspapers and magazines, on the Internet and at international sports events in the 15-nation bloc starting in 2005.
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ABC, the WB, NBC Harvest Increases
The November sweeps period that concluded last Wednesday solidified the comebacks of ABC and the WB, both of which suffered heavy audience defections in November 2001. The WB enjoyed its best sweeps ever, earning its highest ratings among viewers 18-34 and 18-49. And ABC's strong performance in the 18-49 demo boosted the network from a dismal fourth-place finish last November to what was expected to be a second-place showing this year.
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Not a lot of tremendous insight here but a good basic viewpoint on what marketers should be thinking about in the post-Tivo/VOD marketplace. Registration (free) required to read.
The McKinsey Quarterly: Marketing in a post-TiVo world
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