Thursday, February 11, 2016

The political magazines are benefiting from the misfortunes of the newspapers

Another strong set of circulation figures for the political and current affairs magazines like The Spectator, Private Eye, Economist and the New Statesman in the year just gone. People say it was because there was an election. People say it's because there's a European referendum coming up.

I'm not convinced. Seems to me they've been the direct beneficiaries of the decline of the daily papers. People stop buying the papers but still feel a need to read something on paper they can hold in their hands.

Daily is too frequent. Monthly is not frequent enough. Once a week is just perfect. I think this market will grow.


  1. I'm not convinced either.

    It's like trying to work out what makes a hit record. Or a winning team. "Obvious" reasons jump out and smack you in the gob. But in truth, nobody knows.

    Speculation and discussion can be fun, we're all guessing.

    And now, whither "The Independent"?

  2. Seems very plausible, I am sure you are on to something there.
    last Sunday's radio 4 what the papers say programme was by Sam Coates of the Times, and covered the impending closure of the Independent and Independent on Sunday nicely I thought. must catch up with r4 Media Show too.

  3. I've long believed that the ideal format for 'now' would be a rolling website / blog thing that delivered and reacted to news as it broke that was partnered intimately with a perfect-bound bimonthly digest with long reads, lovely photography and infographics &c.

    Or maybe I mean 'this is the publication I want to work on.'