Oprah's new weight issue: a skinnier magazine (Dinosaur Media DeathWatch™)

New York Post ^ | July 22, 2011 | Keith J. Kelly

[abb]

With ratings on Oprah Winfrey's OWN network sagging, the top brass at Hearst must be worried about the impact on the talk-show queen's eponymous magazine.

O, the Oprah Magazine -- the second-most profitable Hearst title behind Cosmopolitan -- has been putting up less-than-impressive ad sales figures in recent months.

According to one former Hearst insider, "I think that the Oprah brand has gotten slightly weaker. Ratings are down significantly for the new network, and there is a sense some of the magic is gone."

Most of the magazine publishing world had a dismal August, with ad sales down 7 percent for all monthlies, according to data appearing in the Media Industry Newsletter.

But O has fared even worse, posting a 31.4 percent drop to 81.4 ad pages. The steep decline pushed its ad-page tally into negative territory compared to last year, down 1.8 percent to 827 pages. Moreover, O's September issue will be down 18.2 percent, to 126 ad pages, according to MIN.

The crucial September numbers -- typically the biggest of the year for most women's magazines -- stood in stark contrast to Vogue, In Style, Glamour and a number of others that all rebounded from a grim August to post gains.

"O's ad page performance is pretty consistent with what's going on in the women's lifestyle category -- there is softness, especially in the food category, which is systemic to their business, not ours," said an O spokeswoman.

Hearst is hoping that fans pining for her syndicated talk show, which aired its finale on May 25, will be more inclined than ever to pick up the magazine.

"The magazine is really the purest platform for Oprah's message, and the best place for fans who miss the show to stay engaged with the brand," said the O spokeswoman.

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[Chode]

poor Harpo...

[Chode]

as her ratings go down, she'll prolly bulk up again...