Thursday, December 11, 2008
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
It's Baaack
I was more than a little excited yesterday to learn that Organic Style, one of my favorite magazines on sustainable living in its short life (it lasted from 2001 to 2005), is back. And it's online (hello, environmentally responsible publishing and easy access for the masses).
Check out the winter issue. I'm a big fan of the digital publishing they use for it—it's the same format as one of my other favorite green magazines, Greenlight (which, by the way, you can subscribe to for free and have delivered to your email inbox). What's so great about this form of digital publishing? For one thing, you get to read a magazine that looks like a magazine rather than web content. And if a story interests you on, say, the cover or TOC, click on it and you're taken right there. Plus this form of digital publishing allows you to easily provide (and get readers to) additional content online. Like a product featured? Odds are with one click you can be on the company webpage ordering it for yourself. (And I have to assume advertisers love the instant access it provides to their products too.)
I haven't read the winter issue of the new Organic Style yet, but I flipped through it (yep, you can do that with these online magazines) and liked what I saw. It's certainly different from the original print version (owned by Rodale), but I'm excited nonetheless.
Take a look. Tell me what you think.
Check out the winter issue. I'm a big fan of the digital publishing they use for it—it's the same format as one of my other favorite green magazines, Greenlight (which, by the way, you can subscribe to for free and have delivered to your email inbox). What's so great about this form of digital publishing? For one thing, you get to read a magazine that looks like a magazine rather than web content. And if a story interests you on, say, the cover or TOC, click on it and you're taken right there. Plus this form of digital publishing allows you to easily provide (and get readers to) additional content online. Like a product featured? Odds are with one click you can be on the company webpage ordering it for yourself. (And I have to assume advertisers love the instant access it provides to their products too.)
I haven't read the winter issue of the new Organic Style yet, but I flipped through it (yep, you can do that with these online magazines) and liked what I saw. It's certainly different from the original print version (owned by Rodale), but I'm excited nonetheless.
Take a look. Tell me what you think.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Monday, January 28, 2008
Dairy Today
I found this post about Dairy Today via How About Orange. What? An ag mag with great design?
The magazine was designed by Pentagram, of all places -- a great design firm.
See? You don't have to be at some glitzy glossy to get great magazine experience.
The magazine was designed by Pentagram, of all places -- a great design firm.
See? You don't have to be at some glitzy glossy to get great magazine experience.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
my weaknesses
Things to improve on:
Clever headlines
Cover blurbs
Well, display copy of all kinds
Ledes
Conclusions
I'm fast and I do good work, says my boss (well, I added that "do good work" part. I think I do good work ...). But I need to not go with my first instinct on ledes, he says. Hm. I hate ledes. I hate clever cover blurbs. Perhaps that's why I'm not good at them. Any tips? What are your weaknesses?
Clever headlines
Cover blurbs
Well, display copy of all kinds
Ledes
Conclusions
I'm fast and I do good work, says my boss (well, I added that "do good work" part. I think I do good work ...). But I need to not go with my first instinct on ledes, he says. Hm. I hate ledes. I hate clever cover blurbs. Perhaps that's why I'm not good at them. Any tips? What are your weaknesses?
Thursday, January 3, 2008
the questions of 2008
My media newsfeed posed some interesting questions today:
Where did you go, investigative journalism?
I don't know about you, but I went in to journalism thinking I'd write groundbreaking investigative pieces, ala Seymour Hersh's expose on the Mai-lai massacre (he's still one of my journalism idols). I'm not sure we'll ever have another era of hard-core investigative pieces that don't become salacious and "To Catch a Predator" in their ridiculousness. Thoughts?
Is everyone creating a Facebook application?
I find it very humorous that media and political pundits are essentially tripping over themselves trying to "harness the power of Facebook." I guess it's inevitable that if there's money to be made with anything, it'll be taken advantage of until it barely resembles what it started out to be (and I'd argue Facebook is nothing like what it was originally, thank you very much, newsfeed.)
Are J-Schools teaching the right things?
I'm curious: what do YOU think Drake's J-school should be teaching that they're not? What are they getting wrong? What are they getting right?
***
Are you caucusing today? Man, if I ever would miss Iowa, it'd surely be today. Caucus for me, ok? Though I'm still not 100-percent sure what side of the room I'd be standing on ...
These Portlanders just don't get the fervor that is caucus season. This time four years ago, I was running scripts for CNN. So fun -- yup, it's true. I miss Iowa today.
Where did you go, investigative journalism?
I don't know about you, but I went in to journalism thinking I'd write groundbreaking investigative pieces, ala Seymour Hersh's expose on the Mai-lai massacre (he's still one of my journalism idols). I'm not sure we'll ever have another era of hard-core investigative pieces that don't become salacious and "To Catch a Predator" in their ridiculousness. Thoughts?
Is everyone creating a Facebook application?
I find it very humorous that media and political pundits are essentially tripping over themselves trying to "harness the power of Facebook." I guess it's inevitable that if there's money to be made with anything, it'll be taken advantage of until it barely resembles what it started out to be (and I'd argue Facebook is nothing like what it was originally, thank you very much, newsfeed.)
Are J-Schools teaching the right things?
I'm curious: what do YOU think Drake's J-school should be teaching that they're not? What are they getting wrong? What are they getting right?
***
Are you caucusing today? Man, if I ever would miss Iowa, it'd surely be today. Caucus for me, ok? Though I'm still not 100-percent sure what side of the room I'd be standing on ...
These Portlanders just don't get the fervor that is caucus season. This time four years ago, I was running scripts for CNN. So fun -- yup, it's true. I miss Iowa today.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
The verboten list.
Awesome how a gimmick can put a JSchool on the map: Your neighbor, Lake Superior State University, polls students and faculty for the year's most overused words and blasts them across the Internets every January first. (Note to Drake admissions folk: This sort of thing would have revved my 18-year-old engine as I was applying to schools, nerd that I am/was.)
The truncated list, for your pleasure:
The truncated list, for your pleasure:
- PERFECT STORM
- WEBINAR
- WATERBOARDING
- ORGANIC
- WORDSMITH/WORDSMITHING
- AUTHOR/AUTHORED
- POST 9/11
- SURGE
- GIVE BACK
- 'BLANK' is the new 'BLANK' or 'X' is the new 'Y'
- BLACK FRIDAY
- BACK IN THE DAY
- RANDOM
- SWEET
- DECIMATE
- EMOTIONAL
- POP
- IT IS WHAT IT IS
- UNDER THE BUS
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