In a MediaLife article, Jeff Bercovici says soon-to-be-sold New York Magazines needs a swift kick in the ass as it has become “dull and formulaic.” Once “hip and influential” the magazine has become “stale and boring by focusing on by-the-numbers service journalism to the exclusion of weightier reporting and commentary.”
A Former New York editor blames much of the downward spiral on former Primedia chairman Tom Rogers saying, “Tom Rogers pretty much micromanaged the editorial of that magazine. What he didn’t get was that the reason service works there is that there’s an assumption on the part of readers that the people producing it are hip and in the know. But if you only do service, it’s going to lose that quality.”
New York Magazine’s yet-to-be-determined buyer will have some serious work do to following the acquisition for the magazine to regain its once illustrious perch.
