| The insanity can only go so far before it backfires. For a few years now at least, Fortune Magazine, which used to be a hot magazine in the late 90s early 2000s, looks to be on its last legs. Back in its heyday, it was published 23 issues a year and some of their issues were 300 pages and filled with advertising. Now they are publishing 12 issues and the current issue is only 98 pages with tons of "comp" advertising pages -- essentially pages being traded with conference companies and anybody just to fill up pages. The magazine has lost most of the high-powered editors it had in the past and replaced them with lower-paid younger reporters. And the editorial content is less about business and more about trying to say the economy is in trouble, women are taking over business, and businesses need to be socially conscious and green. Worst of all, their virtue signaling and political bias is so transparent. Fortune is owned by Meredith, the firm who owns Lady's Home Journal -- and it shows. They are trying to get women to buy the magazine as the men cancel their subscriptions. Quick analysis of their advertisements here: Paid Ads -- 14 pages Ameritrade, Lexus, Progressive insurance, Fidelity, AT&T Affirmative Action, GEICO, Samsung (2), CloudBlue, White Hat Security, Scania Energy,Keysight "Diversity Business",and Government of Japan "Where Women Shine", Toyota Corolla hatchback - a car for commuters, no muscle car here! |
 Complementary (Traded) Ads -- 16 pages CEO Investor Forum, Fortune Global Forum, Scottsdale Arizona, Brainstorm conference, Wavelengths Detoxication Treatment (8 pages!), The Players Golf, Child Fund Charity, Auburn University MBA, and Scottsale Hotel. OK, so if there are only 14 paid ad pages out of a 98-page issue, that's a big money loser. To be profitable a magazine generally needs around 50% of its pages to be paid advertising. And look at the cover of the magazine. Have you ever seen a worse cover for a national business magazine? There's a silver lining here. My prediction: Fortune will be sold this year -- and hopefully to a publisher who realizes that when American business is booming, a well-known (and former high quality) magazine that cares about business more than politics can be winner! |