The state of print: Only the strong survive

MANILA, Philippines - And then by the end of the day I am just SO exhausted from running around doing all these errands so I must come home to the apartment which I still share with my parents because I am absolutely SO broke from not making any money interning for the past two years, and I have to complain about the current state of journalism and how there are no jobs and the Internet is killing everything and blogs are taking over the world such that there is no editorial discretion and everyone can be a writer but no one’s really that good and by then I am in SUCH a state of panic that my mummy (I don’t know why I call her that, I’m not British) must rub my feet and simultaneously pet my hair and bring me orange juice and crackers so that I will not have a dizzy spell from so much emotion and low blood sugar... — Sarah Geller, ‘Eloise at Conde Nast’ (McSweeney’s)

So much depends upon a red Anne Hathaway, glazed with rainwater, beside the Parisian fountain.

In the grand scheme of cinema, it’s a scene that’s hardly remarkable in a film that’s just barely good. But when Andy Sachs (Hathaway) throws that phone into the Parisian fountain, effectively cutting her ties with the indomitable Miranda Priestley, she might be on to something metaphoric. In these financially-unstable times, readers seem to be following Andy Sachs’ example and chucking their metaphorical phones and saying goodbye to Miranda Priestley and her ilk forever.

Wintour Wonderland

A Hollywood actress can make suffering look glamorous, but her plight is essentially the same as Eloise’s experiences in Sarah Geller’s essay “Eloise at Conde Nast,” a fictionalized account of working at the publishing giant.

“The editor-in-chief needs me to build a mobile for him made entirely out of paper and Elmer’s glue,” she writes, “and while it’s drying I have to run down advertising on the 7th floor to give something to the publisher but then I have to messenger out three copies of the May issue to a publicist so I quickly rush down to the Mail Center in the sub-basement which can only be accessed through a backdoor on the ground floor and by taking several flights of steep stairs — and of course I am wearing high heels, because that’s what everybody wears.”

It’s a world that was immortalized in the 2009 film The September Issue, R.J. Cutler’s fly-on-the-wall documentary about the creation of Vogue’s ground-breakingly thick 2007 September issue, which clocked in at 800 pages.

But it’s also a world that’s long gone. By the 2009 release of the documentary, that year’s September Vogue had shrunk to 600 pages. This year’s edition reportedly comes in at 726 pages, impressive but hardly 800. The bubble has popped. The world accused of aloofness, of being in a fantasy world, that has isolated some readers, is on its knees.

In these financially-unstable times, the Wintour wonderland documented in September Issue seems like a part of a bygone era where Conde Nast editors were chauffeured in limos and shoot budgets frequently grazed the six figures. In a world where the Internet and its army of bloggers have taken citizen journalism to new highs (and devastating lows), does anyone still care about magazines?

Conde Not

According to Denise Velasquez, operations manager of Fully Booked (arguably the magazine carrier with the most buzz and traffic), they carry about 60 local titles. In this cramped industry, five stand out — Mega, Rogue, Metro, Uno, and Preview.

In an industry where several magazines close every year, only to be replaced with new titles, each promising a revolution in a hundred or so pages, these five titles keep pace by being ahead of the curve and by consistently presenting quality content.

Mega’s Sari Yap, who serves as both publisher and editor-in-chief, explains that one must make sure the brand grows. “Not only keeping up, it is... (about) growing. It is not impossible (to keep up) if a magazine with a strong brand equity evolves as its market changes.”

This is a mantra that Metro also lives by. “Throughout the years, we’ve learned that to keep up with the times,” says associate editor Bianca Consunji. “We need to have a keen understanding of the magazine’s core identity while remaining willing to adapt to key changes in publishing and its audience.”

For Preview, it’s all about top-notch quality. “We are the best at what we do,” Preview editor in chief Pauline Suaco-Juan says simply. “We work very hard to keep our content fresh, relevant, and practical. The team has boundless energy and is a fountain of ideas. We work with the best photographers, makeup artists, illustrators, etc. in the country.”

Jose Mari Ugarte, editor-in-chief of Rogue, thinks that Rogue’s success can be attributed to two factors. “First is quality, passion, and attention to detail in every single page,” he says. “Next is we are unique. We’ve carved out a niche that is both completely original and entirely dependable, as it covers everything that is exciting, interesting, and relevant about our country, its people, and its culture.”

On the other hand, the revamped Uno prides itself as a readers’ magazine. “Over the years, Uno has built quite a following, and the past year especially has seen the magazine adapt and evolve for the better, and in the process win over new enthusiasts,” associate editor Erwin Romulo explains. “Every magazine will claim this, but we really try to put together something special every month — like our ‘silent’ photography issue, or our travel/escape special — something people will actually be excited by and interested in reading and perusing.”

Only The Strong Survive

Last month, Metro made headlines when it became the first local magazine to have an iPad application. “The free Metro iPad application made us accessible to a global audience, so we’ve been getting feedback from people from around the world,” Consunji says.

 While Rogue, Uno, and Preview have all already made great strides in going online, it’s the bravest move in an industry that’s slowly trying to adapt to digital.

“I think a lot of people were surprised that we came out with the iPad app before any local magazine (even the tech-oriented ones), but that’s the point we’re trying to make: to stay current, we have to surprise a constantly evolving, fickle audience — while giving our faithful readers what they look forward to every month.”

Magazines Can Have A Real Impact

Contrary to popular belief, print still matters, even to the youth.

For Gabriel Go, 19, nothing beats the exhilarating rush of checking out the latest bombshell in a magazine centerfold. For 20-year-old Christine Braganza, an aspiring stylist, it’s still a good trend-tracker, in that it not only presents trends, but evaluates them, too. “It’s still a good way to keep current and see what’s going on internationally,” she says. Both Christine and Gabriel are tech-savvy members of the Facebook-connected young readership.

“The format may change, but magazines will still be relevant,” Consunji says. “Magazines have evolved greatly from the time Harper’s Bazaar and The New Yorker came out with their first issues — so why should we expect things to be the same 10 years from now?”

Romulo says, “Much has been said about the tactile, sensory aspect, which is of course a significant part of it, but it also has something to do with the process of producing a magazine: that mind-meld, that collaborative back-and-forth.”

But when all is said and done, it boils down to the reader. In Spin magazine’s 25th anniversary issue published this year, music editor Charles Aaron tells a story about his interview with Bradford Cox of the band Deerhunter, who suffers from Marfan Syndrome, “a genetic tissue disorder that can result in a painfully and disproportionately skeletal frame.”

“I remember getting that cover with PJ Harvey on it,” Cox said. “At that time, it was Pavement and the Breeders and PJ Harvey — they were everything to me. And in the photo, she was in her underwear and was so gaunt and looked almost sick, but still strong somehow, and I remember taking that magazine over to my father and saying, ‘See, Dad, if she can do it, I can do it.’ If somebody who looks like that can be a rock star then I can look how I look and be accepted.”

“Not God’s work,” Aaron concludes, “but we do what we can.”

In the end, Andy Sachs never really said goodbye to magazines. She left the magazine to join another one, albeit one more attuned to sensibilities. Perhaps, if ever readers ultimately say goodbye to print magazines, they’ll also just be moving to a format more attuned to their new media sensibilities.

“Readers can tell,” Romulo says. “Magazines, done right, are entertaining, intelligent, irreplaceable documents of our times. In 10 years, I trust I will be answering your questions about our September 2020 issue.”