Kids don’t read. That, in short, is myth number one that you hear day in and day out. And if you are willing to believe myth number one, then for sure you will believe myth number two: even if kids read they do not read history magazines. Well, the funny thing about both myths is just that: they are myths. Kids do read and kids have enjoyed reading a history magazine aimed at them called Cobblestone for almost 30 years.

Cobblestone magazine was founded by two New Hampshire women, Hope Pettegrew and Frances Nankin, in January of 1980. They wrote in the introduction to the first issue of the magazine, “Month by month we will be traveling together around our country, visiting the different people, places and events which have played an important part in our history.” The magazine is now part of the Carus Publishing group and this coming January will publish its 30th anniversary issue celebrating 30 Greatest Americans.

I asked Lou Waryncia, Editorial Director of Cobblestone Publishing, five questions regarding the magazine, kids’ reading habits, the future, the impact of technology and the status of children’s magazines in what can be described a “collective Attention Deficit Disorder society.” What follows is the Mr. Magazine™ Interview with Lou Waryncia:

Samir Husni: With the internet taking off faster than a speeding bullet, and digital technology moving printed magazines and books out of the front page news, do you think the end is near for children’s printed magazines?

Lou Waryncia: I do not think the end is near for children’s magazines. I’m a firm believer that print will be around for a long time. Certainly technology is changing the magazine industry, and we’re all trying different ways to co-exist with these changes. But magazines still have a place with children (and adults). We get letters from children all the time saying how much they enjoy their magazines. Getting that magazine in the mail (with their name on it) is still a big deal to most kids. I had a mother tell me recently (and this isn’t the first time) that her son hides himself away in his room and reads his magazine cover to cover the moment it arrives. That one-on-one connection is real.

SH: Do you know whether it makes a difference for kids to read from a laptop, digital device or a printed magazine or book? Any studies you are aware of?

LW: The only study I’m aware of is a 2007 report from the National Endowment for the Arts that indicated a drop in test scores was due to a decrease in the amount of time children read. It brought up the point that kids are reading elsewhere, other than books and magazines, but gave no conclusions on what type of reading is best for kids. Does it make a difference where kids read? I think it depends on the child. I read books, but I was not a big book reader as a kid, but I devoured magazines. I think it’s the same for kids today. There are just more choices today. I think magazines have the capacity to compete with the Internet and other digital devices because of the variety of content and due to great graphics and design.

SH: Cobblestone is celebrating 30 years of publishing and is continuing to focus on history for young kids, do you think that the so called “collective ADD society” can still focus on history and its role in our lives?

LW: The longevity of our magazine proves that kids can and will focus on history if it’s written and presented to them in a way that they find interesting. Cobblestone has grown and changed with the times to make history fun as well as informative. Our goal is to show kids that history has an important place in their lives because it defines who they are and where they came from. Understanding history is a very important part of being a good citizen. Will all kids enjoy Cobblestone, no. But that’s true with any magazine. Yet I think we do a good job of making the subject matter enticing, and I hope entertaining, to a wide audience.

SH: Where do you see the future for all Carus’ magazines? Have you been growing? Steady? Declining?

LW: This has been a tough year for us as a publishing company. But we’ve remained fairly steady in terms of circulation. No dramatic decrease in circulation among our company’s 14 magazines. And we’re non-advertising based. Our subscription rates are higher than other magazines and pay for the publications. One reason I believe we continue to be successful is that parents, grandparents, teachers, and librarians value our magazines and want to get them into the hands of their children. Adults will skimp on themselves, but will still buy items, such as our magazines, that they believe are important for their children. People make a commitment when they buy our magazines.

As to the future, I hope to be around for Cobblestone’s 40th anniversary. And I feel strongly that my company’s magazines will still have a place in the lives of children. Will there be changes, or interactions with technology, definitely. We’re still trying to find our place on the Internet. And will we deliver our content in different ways? Definitely. But I believe we’ll still be flipping through print magazine pages as well.

SH: Will it matter where your great content is consumed? On the screen or on the pages of the magazine?

LW: Ultimately, I don’t think so. Good content is good content. But I think the experience is different. And people respond to media differently. Attention span and the amount of value one places on a medium, or what someone simply likes better has a lot to do with how content is consumed. Studies will eventually tell us if reading on a screen is different, better, worse, or equal to print. I wish I knew the answer. But as in most media battles, everyone seems to find a way to coexist. I believe the magazine will still be an important part of children’s lives for some time.

What would you call a person who is willing to pay $20 for a single issue of a magazine? A customer who counts. This last week I bought two magazines, Vintage and MyMag that I paid $20 and $10 for a single copy for each respectively, and I did that gladly. A third magazine (which is on its way to me) that also counts is the Dutch magazine O.K. Periodical, the design oriented magazine from The Netherlands. All three have one thing in common: innovation for customers who count and not just count customers together with the best usage of technology to amplify the printed product.


Vintage magazine’s premiere issue is a printed beauty to hold. The magazine, modeled after the famous Flair magazine of the 50s (which by the way, I have every issue of), uses various different types of paper, die-cuts, fold-outs and is sewn together rather than stapled or glued. Each page explores the “possibilities of print, font, color, photography, and texture…” The magazine is the brainchild of Ivy Baer Sherman who was inspired to create Vintage magazine by Fleur Cowles who published and edited Flair in 1950 -51. Vintage magazine is worth every penny of the $20 and can be ordered at the magazine’s website here.

MyMag on the other hand, is the $10 an issue new magazine founded by Mangus Greaves, Phil Rugile and Warren Noronha. Each issue of MyMag uses a celebrity to scan the available media in order to create a magazine that addresses the desires of that celebrity. So, if you are a fan of Steve AOKI, you will love the first issue of the magazine that AOKI put together for you. For a visual and voyeur society, what best can bring you the thoughts and actions of a celebrity right there to your mailbox. MyMag is sold on the magazine’s website here and can ordered on an issue by issue basis.

O.K. Periodicals third issue is themed Repeat. The Dutch independent design-magazine, shows the world’s first crowd-sourced magazine cover. A brilliant idea of using technology and digital to create a print product that would have taken ages to do in the golden olden days. “Hundreds of people have made their contribution by designing a small part of it,” says William van Giessen on behalf of the editorial team of the magazine. He adds, ” The bizarre yet unique reproduction underlines the power of the online network.” The magazine, published twice a year, launched their third issue in Berlin to celebrate the “on and off line celebration of media.” The issue can be ordered from the magazine’s website here.

The aforementioned three magazines are nothing but a tiny example of what innovation can do to preserve print and the role of print in a fast moving technological and digital age. It is another reminder that we must use technology to amplify the future of print and not just vice versa. We have to continue to explore and expand our ways on how to reach our relevant customers through the relevant media without the need to sacrifice one on the alter of the other. Our future is not going to be either or, but rather, all.

In an exclusive report on Foliomag.com, the Hearst Communications’ new launch Food Network magazine was named The Most Notable Launch of the Year. The magazine, launched in Nov. 08 was selected from a field of 752 magazines published between Oct. 08 and Sept. 09. Read the entire story by Folio’s Matt Kinsman here.

Some excerpts from Foliomag.com are below:

While 2009 may be remembered more for the number (and quality) of magazines that closed, it was also an active year for launches, with 752 new titles debuting between October 2008 and September 2009, according to Samir “Mr. Magazine” Husni, director of the Magazine Innovation Center at the University of Mississippi.

Of those 752 new magazines, Husni has identified the 15 most notable launches of the past year. His criteria include five key questions:

■ How much publicity did the magazine generate?
■ How relevant was the magazine to the intended market?
■ Was the magazine notably diversified and specialized?
■ How innovative were the magazines?
■ Was the magazine so bizarre it had to be included?

“Since the industry seemingly came to a crashing halt in September 2008, we are starting to see more and more evidence that the American publishing model of the past is dead and that our industry has to innovate to survive,” says Husni. “Many of these notable launches are witnesses to that.”

For a complete look at Husni’s 15 Most Notable Launches of the Year, and his interview with Food Network magazine publisher Vicki Wellington, look for FOLIO:’s December issue.

“It will continue to be essential.” Those were the six-word-answer that Roberto Civita, CEO and Editor in Chief of the Abril group in Sao Paulo gave me when I asked him about the future of journalism. An avid speaker and an engaging journalist first and most, Mr. Civita was the lunchon speaker at the Third Brazilian National Association of Magazine Editors Forum (ANER) in Sao Paulo last week. The theme of the Forum was “A digital future that preserves the print.” In one of those rare positions in today’s marketplace, Mr. Civita holds the highest rank, on both editorial and business sides, of one of Latin America’s largest publishing, printing and electronic media companies. The last person, in modern times, to play such a dual role in a major media company (as far as I can remember) is Henry Luce, the founder of Time Inc. in the early 1920s in the United States of America.

Mr. Civita spoke about Quality Journalism in the Multimedia Age. “Quality journalism comes before everything else,” he told the audience at the Forum. “This means journalism must continue to provide engaging content that respect the facts and is committed to the truth.” His call to action included a broad definition of what a journalist should do, now, tomorrow and in the future. “Journalist must verify all the information, be creative, respect the readers and always be ethical, no exceptions regardless of what type of journalism they are engaging in: news, fashion, sports, etc.” he added.

“Our future,” Mr. Civita said, “depends on competent and able journalist who can produce the content readers want and need. We should not stop at the want, but also include the need.” He emphasized the need to establish a long lasting relationship with our readers, one that is based on the publication, the magazine, the brand. “Yes, I resisted using the word brand for years,” he said, “But now I am willing to use it. However, I will never refer to our magazines and publications as products. Products are for things like soap and other stuff that you just use and finish with. We are much more than products, with all due respect to soap and all other products. We are about relationships.”

As for the changing media landscape, Mr. Civita said, “Managing a company today, in a world that has changed, needs organizational competence. Just like the printing press changed the entire world in the 1400s, so is the digital revolution is doing now. “Mind you, however, this revolution is still in its infancy. You need to improve your competence and add a digital component to what you do,” he added. “People now have access to more things, more information and in the end they will converge in the same place.” But no matter what, there are two things that will never change when in comes to our future Mr. Civita said. “There will always be only 24 hours in a day and there will always be the need to look for reliable and credible information.”

Mr. Civita’s final words charged the journalists with six essentials to ensure a future full with quality journalism:

1. Understand the technological changes and trends that are taking place
2. Focus on your audience. Get to know them. It is the journalist who should know the audience, not the marketing person.
3. Produce and deliver content that works in this new environment… as they (the audience) want it.
4. Integrate interactivity and social media… one way is over.
5. Explore and extend your brand… at the end it is going to be an issue of who can they trust.
6. Bring together VERIFIED digital and print content. It is the key to do everything. There should be no talk about journalism without multimedia skills.

“Our job here is not just to make money,” the CEO of Abril said, “Our job is to make a difference, to change the world, to produce magazines with souls. That will make all the difference in the future of quality journalism.”

The next day, I had an opportunity to visit with Mr. Civito at his headquarters in Sao Paulo where I asked him during lunch with him and some of his key Abril folks about the future of journalism. Listen to the short, but most effective six-word-answer from the man himself, Mr. Roberto Civita, the Henry Luce of Brazil.

From Brazil with love, yours truly standing on the balcony of the executive dinning room at the media company Abril. On Wed. Nov. 11, I gave a speech at the Third ANER Forum in Sao Paulo entitled, “Don’t Promote The Suicide of Your Print Magazine” and on Thursday Nov. 12, I spoke at the second annual Web Conference at Abril on the “Using Technology to Amplify the Future of Print.”

Esquire’s December issue screams Augmented Reality Issue, The First Ever. Well, first things first, COLORS magazine had its Augmented Reality issue on the newsstands at least two weeks before Esquire, so what gives with this First Ever business.

However, I am first to give credit where credit is due, and Esquire magazine in the last 12 months has not been afraid of experimenting with innovative ideas and mixing technology and ink on paper, so kudos goes to the folks at Esquire for not being asleep behind the wheel. That aside, both magazines are promising the readers “A living, breathing, moving, talking magazine? For instructions on how to use this thing Downey’s sitting on, see pg. 21 and visit www.esquire.com/ar” as in the case of Esquire, and “This magazine is incomplete… aim this square towards a webcam at www.colorsmagazine.com to find the full content.”

Well, I did. I followed both instructions and recorded my experiment with both magazines using my laptop and my flip camera to record the “the first ever” in what I am sure will be many other first evers. The result was fun, captivating and useless, all three in one… like eating cotton candy…eating all that hot air that will satisfy your taste buds but will leave you hungry rather than satisfied.

Later today, I am speaking at the Brazilian Association of Magazine Editors (ANER) in Sao Paulo and my topic is “Don’t promote the suicide of your print magazine.” Experimenting with Augmented Reality before giving my speech, gave me more ammunition to push even more towards creating a necessary, sufficient and relevant medium… one medium at a time. (More about the ANER conference in an another blog later).

Enjoy the two experiments and let me know what you think? One final word of caution: Focus on the experiment and not my ability to handle a Flip Video camera, a lap top, and two ink on paper magazines all at the same time. By the way, don’t you think it would have been easier on the readers and more helpful to just post those videos on the website and ask readers to go watch them… at least then, there will be nothing between your face and your lap top screen… Go figure.

Enough commentary from me…watch the two two-minute videos and judge for yourself.

Here are the facts: almost 100 new magazines were launched in the month of October. Those magazines covered every single topic you can imagine. From Best Loved Casseroles to Yoga for beginners; from Angels and Miracles to Hollywood Hair; from Fast Fitness to Men Fetish; and Woodworking for Your Home to Greatest Aviation Photos. Who would have thought that new magazines would be flooding the market place during one of the worst economic times of all time. Magazine closures are announced almost daily and media critics have written magazine obituaries time and time again.

So, what gives? That is what makes my business of collecting and tracking magazine launches interesting. It is like swimming against the current, something I have learned from my professors of journalism who taught me what real journalism is all about: swimming against the current and never accepting the status quo as the be all end all status. And, I am not alone. Folks who are willing to launch a New Awareness magazine “all over the world” six times a year, or those who are re-introducing Tinker Bell as a bimonthly magazine, or even those who publish a Resistance, the journal of the Earth Liberation Movement or JM magazine (Just Models) are all swimming against the current.

However, as I look and count my October collection of new magazines, the figures amazes me: a whopping 99 titles that I was able to find on the nation’s newsstands for the first time. But wait, as they say in the info-mercials, there is more to the story. I have noticed a huge increase in the number of specials and one shots flooding the market place. In fact, of the 99 new titles, 87 were specials with an average cover price of $8.66. I spend almost a $753.62 on those new titles.

When you hear the stories about how crowded the newsstands are and how the sales of the audited ABC titles are slipping, do you ever stop and ask yourself what impact those specials are creating for the marketplace. Mind you that most of these specials are not coming from small publishers or individual entrepreneurs who are trying to find a foot hold in the marketplace. These are coming from big publishers such as Time Inc., Reader’s Digest Association, Taunton Press, Meredith, etc. You get the picture.

So what is one to say about this phenomenon of specials and one shots? Is it the future of magazine publishing? Is this where the future of print is going to be? Well, I have always said that magazine publishing is all about relationships. In my book there are three types of relationships: the one night stand, the love affair and the long lasting partnership. To me those specials are like those one night stand affairs. They do not create an addictive relationship that people will come back for more. It is a one time occurrence that ends with the end of the experience itself.

If we are going to ensure a bright and healthy future for our industry, maybe that is one place we need to take a look at. We need to stop the one night stands and start creating magazines that will introduce our readers and customers to love affairs and long lasting relationships. One night stands will not do it.

Once again, I am back on my soap box preaching the importance of creating print that is worth keeping, repeating and engaging. We should be in the business of long lasting relationships if we are going to survive the future. The band-aids we are using today will not stop the bleeding, and if we can’t survive our present, do you really think the future will matter?

Roy Reiman, founder of Reiman Publications (Country and Taste of Home among many others) and current publisher of Our Iowa magazine, was the keynote speaker for the 26th annual Fall Journalism Week at the University of Mississippi’s School of Journalism and New Media. He spoke about the Gloom, Doom and Zoom in the media industry. I asked Roy after his presentation what will he tell someone who asks him what does it take to launch a new magazine in today’s marketplace. Click on the video below to hear his answer.

“Romancing Journalism” would have been a great title for the speech that Bob Guccione, Jr., founder of Spin and Gear magazines gave during Journalism Week at The University of Mississippi’s School of Journalism yesterday. Guccione spoke to the students about his “labor of love and seeking truth” during his career as the publisher of Spin, Gear and Discover magazines. I had the chance to catch up with Bob after his speech and asked him about the essence of journalism. What is the utmost importance to journalists today and what role should technology play in this whole new ball of wax we call new media. Click on the video below to hear Bob’s answer:

What does it take to run a remarkable business and not just a good business? Roger Fransecky, founder and CEO of the consulting group APOGEE, has the answer to this question using his famous three Ps: Prose, Poetry and Plumbing. View his answer below.

Roger spoke today at the opening of the Fall Journalism Week at the School of Journalism and New Media at the University of Mississippi.

There are over 7,000 magazines distributed on the nation’s newsstands every month and few of the aforementioned magazines ever makes it to the heartland of American homes and customers. In fact more than 3,000 independent magazines never engage in any type of direct mail solicitations, so they remain unnoticed by many.

Well, not after this coming January. My friend Andrew Losowsky, author, writer, editor and co-curator of the independent magazine forum Colophon, has embarked on a new venture: Stack America. He writes about this new subscription service, “Think of it as a private magazine club that brings a fresh perspective on the world every two months. It’s the perfect gift for anyone who works in editorial, graphic design or advertising – or even a doctor or dentist looking for something fresh to put in their waiting room. If you live in the USA and you’re at all interested in modern storytelling, Stack America is for you.” (Just a side note, did I mention that those magazines arriving at your home are Ink on Paper magazines and not digital entities!)

The goal of Stack America is “to help connect amazing magazines with curious readers, showcasing the best in imaginative, independent publishing.” The idea of Stack America comes from Stack Magazines, a subscription service that was founded in London in 2008 by journalist Steve Watson, to bring the best independent publishing to a wider audience. The majority of its magazines are European-based. Stack America is its New England-based offshoot, sending out mainly American independent magazines.

The subscription price to Stack America choice of magazines is $71.99, quite a hefty price compared to the majority of the traditional American magazines. So I asked Andrew:

Why do you think people will pay such a high price for magazines they do not know about? While the average sub. price is still under $25, why do you think readers are willing to pay that high price?

AL: Part of Stack America’s mission is to help people rethink what they understand as being a magazine. In reality, we’re talking about two different kinds of magazine.
Those who have subs under $25 are the big name glossy magazines, where much of the editorial is sourced from press releases and PR. Though there are occasional exceptions, these are publications created for advertisers ahead of readers, and by editorial teams who are scared to innovate much, in case they lose their market position and put off a potential advertiser.

Stack America, however, deals with a very different kind of magazine: publications created by imaginative, groundbreaking people outside of the mainstream, telling stories through words, design and images as they want them told. Not all of these are successful experiments – but when they get it right, they point to a future for print, showing the mainstream how and where to go next. Their biggest problem is distribution – which is where Stack America comes in. We’re handpicking only the best magazines to showcase to an audience that we think will love them too. No magazine can pay to be part of Stack America – the credibility and selection is our guarantee, and we think that people will agree it’s worth the price (which still works out cheaper than buying the magazines individually).

It isn’t for everyone – and we don’t expect the majority of glossy magazine buyers to sign up. However, those people who love great design, storytelling, creativity and imaginative publishing are in for a treat.

SH: What are the obstacles that you envision to see in the near future?

Stack America is only as strong as the magazines who are a part of it, but for the next few years at least, I’m not worried about that. There are plenty of fantastic magazines out there that we’re either talking to already or will be soon, about being a part of Stack America. It’s amazing the work that’s being produced out there, and a tragedy that it isn’t reaching its natural audience. I’m hopeful that we can help make at least a small difference in giving them a boost.

Thanks Andrew. It you have started such a service years ago, you would have saved me hundreds of dollars in airline tickets traveling the country searching for those magazines, because I knew that I can’t find them in small-town USA. Indeed, a fantasy service for magazine lovers all over the United States, a fantasy that can now easily be fulfilled. Sign me up!