Tuesday, September 30, 2008

let them eat cake

Newspapers and magazines are folding right and left. (Latest casualty, the New York Sun) Those that survive are cutting back. The economy is in shambles, with (as of today) no bail-out in sight. And yet.

The Wall Street Journal reports that magazines and websites devoted to food are not only surviving, but thriving. There will be 336 pubs targeted toward foodies this year -- with several new ones ready for launch.

Interesting. Probably says something about the times: When the going gets tough, the tough want to cook? bk

4 comments:

Lotta K said...

You know how lipstick sales soars when times are bad? As in we are all spending that little tiny extra on ourselves instead of buying something more expensive. Maybe the food thing is the same. You have to eat and by making it into more of a big deal you feel luxurious. Even if it;s just potato soup with a twist.

Timithie said...

In addition to food mags (my favorite subject) the boom in hyper-local journalism is continuing. A new set of magazines in the LA area is set to begin bimonthly publishing in a few weeks. Their catch: issues are produced by zip code. Pasadena alone will receive 6 different versions of the mag, all titled to the zip code they represent (i.e. Discover 91104, Discover 91105, etc.) The publishers, a husband and wife team, got the idea from an apparently successful version published in the Las Vegas area. They seem quite confident that being able to target high-income neighborhoods will bring in mega ad dollars. Of course, I doubt that south/east LA will be seeing any "Discover" magazines any time soon.

Anonymous said...

or the tough want to eat? i know i always do.

Anonymous said...

Or, as is the case in New York, it's too expensive to go out for food, so you have to cook.