Daily affirmations of a word mercenary
Burning
19Jul2001 Filed under: Columbia Publishing CourseThis morning we had a speaker come talk to us about magazine circulation issues. After posting a P&L (profit and loss) statement on the overhead, illustrating a magazine that seemed to be selling well but was losing lots of money, he asked us “Why would anyone stay in this business?”
Answers were offered about how subscription income hadn’t been factored into the P&L, about how agency sells weren’t shown, and the speaker nodded dubiously and said “What else? Why would ANYONE want to do this?” I raised my hand. He called on me.
“Because they have a burning desire to bring quality content to the readership,” I said.
Everyone laughed, including the speaker. “Well, a burning desire does help,” he chuckled. The class continued to titter.
“But that wasn’t supposed to be funny,” I said, more to myself than anyone else. At 26, aren’t I supposedly too old to be an idealist? Will I be forever cursed with my determined optimism?
- Previous: Mull It
- Next: Take Your Pic Photos from
One Response to “Burning”
Leave a reply
Hey there. I'm Ariel Meadow Stallings, a native Seattleite who's written my way up and down the Left Coast. Electrolicious is where I post daily randomata, but I also write for a living. My first book, Offbeat Bride, was published last year.
You're reading a page from the archives. Check the homepage for current content.
Electrolicious» Blog Archive » FAQ: Existential marketing
December 6th, 2007 at 2:38 pm
[...] CPC was the final step in my jadation. I finally accepted the truth: 99% of magazines are glossy ad delivery systems. That’s all they are. Content is just there to pad out the ads. Ultimately, unless a magazine is ad-free (Cook’s Illustrated, Ms. Magazine, The Sun) the editorial is driven by advertising. That’s the nature of the industry. [...]