Magazines

Mikki Taylor spent over 30 years at Essence, first in the mag’s fashion and sewing department in the early 80s and most recently as its cover and style director, and she says the key to longevity in publishing is a combination of good ideas, enthusiasm, and a pro-active attitude.

“First, you have to know the territory. You also have to know your gift,” she explained in our Media Beat interview. “Is there room for your gift at the magazine at which you currently work? And, if so, how will you play that forward? And how well are you selling yourself everyday not only in the things that you say but in your actions, in the ideas that you come to the table with. Are you asking yourself ‘what great things am I going to do today?’”

Watch the full video to find out how Taylor found the courage to leave Essence and start her own consultancy, Mikki Taylor Enterprises.

Part 1: Mikki Taylor on Her 30 Years at Essence
Part 2: Essence‘s Mikki Taylor Takes on Casual Fridays

Create a social media strategy, launch your campaign, and track the results in our Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting February 16. The online event and workshop will feature speakers including The Onion‘s Baratunde Thurston (left), Facebook’s Morin Oluwole, and bitly’s Tim Devane. Register now.

Newsweek has just announced a few big changes. Jane Spencer, one of the founding editors of The Daily Beast, is leaving on a sabbatical, but will continue to contribute as International Editor at Large.

Deidre Depke, a one-time editor of Newsweek.com, is returning to the company to succeed Spencer as the site’s new Executive Editor. Depke rejoins Newsweek/The Daily Beast from The Week’s website.

Tom Watson has also been promoted to Managing Editor and Louise Roug, another former staffer, is coming back to serve as Foreign Editor. Roug begins next month.

Below is the full memo announcing the changes from Tina Brown:

Read more

In her new book Commander in Chic, Essence editor-at-large Mikki Taylor doles out fashion and beauty tips for the everyday woman based on examples from Michelle Obama.

“I love her clear cut assurance, the way she owns her style from within,” she explained in our Media Beat interview.

And one thing FLOTUS has done, according to Taylor, is inject a much needed sophistication into America’s dress code. Casual Fridays? No, thank you, she says.

“I think that we’re a little too relaxed. I think a relaxed nation creates other kinds of flexibilities that shouldn’t exist. Let’s treat each other with the respect and the honor that we are due, and so the subliminal things play into that. If we’re coming to work in sneakers, if we’re coming to work in ripped jeans and plaid shirts, who are we representing?”

Part 1:Mikki Taylor on Her 30 Years at Essence
Part 3: Mikki Taylor’s Advice for Magazine Editors: ‘Take the Leap Forward’

When Oprah stopped her popular talk show last fall, women everywhere fretted over who would tell them what to read and how to feel about their feelings. Not only that, Hearst, the publishing house behind O, The Oprah Magazine, had to deal with the Oprah-less void and its ramifications on the magazine.

According to Adweek, the results haven’t been pretty. During the second half of last year, O’s newsstand sales dropped a hefty 32 percent. That’s way more than the norm for the industry, which saw consumer magazines single sales drop an average of 10 percent.

A rep for O said the economy was to blame, not a noticeable lack of Oprah’s smiling face on TV screens, and it should be noted that subscriptions were up for the magazine by four percent.

However, if things don’t improve O might have to do something drastic, like put someone other than Oprah on the cover for once. The world loves a good controversy!

When Mikki Taylor first started working for Essence in the early 80s, there weren’t nearly as many images of black women in the media as there are today. In our Media Beat interview, the fashion and beauty maven credited longtime EIC Susan Taylor for instilling staffers with a sense of purpose early on.

“I just remember her saying to me, ‘We come to this magazine to contribute,’ and it was something that she instilled in me that day that I walk with to this day,” Taylor recalled. “In fact, when I got the job, I was ready to go on a mission. It became more than a job from the moment I walked in the doors and began serving black women.”

Watch the full video to find out which Essence covers Taylor found most difficult to direct and what she has to say to the magazine’s critics.

Part 2: Essence‘s Mikki Taylor Takes on Casual Fridays
Part 3: Mikki Taylor’s Advice for Magazine Editors: ‘Take the Leap Forward’

If you’re a subscriber to Esquire and GQ like us, your upcoming March issues are going to look a lot alike. No, we don’t mean all the expensive stuff that you want but can’t afford. Both Esquire and GQ have articles about the crazy Zanesville, Ohio, exotic animal massacre in their next issues. Esquire’s is written by Chris Jones, GQ’s by Chris Heath.

Normally we’d be opposed to this, but the subject matter is worthy of the treatment. Now instead of one take on it, you can get two. Feel free to compare and contrast them because they’re both online now, prior to the print editions. Then let us know which one you enjoyed more.

Just don’t post a link to Tsovet’s race car watch. We wanted it badly — and were quite prepared to sell our bodies [Editor's note: Okay, maybe just my body] on the street for one — but they’ve already sold out. Maybe it was for the best, but the pain is still very real.

Kassie Means has been promoted from Associate Publisher to Publisher and Chief Revenue Officer of Country Living. Means — who has been at Country Living since 1996 — has worked as Associate Publisher since late 2010.

“Kassie is a tremendous asset and I’m thrilled to see her step into this role,” said Patricia Haegele, Senior Vice President, Publishing Director and Chief Revenue Officer of Hearst Magazines’ women’s lifestyle group. “She and Editor-in-Chief Sarah Gray Miller are a powerful team — their creativity and dedication to the brand and its 11 million readers will fuel the continued growth and success of Country Living.“

Organic Gardening has promoted Jeff Tkach from Associate Publisher to Publisher. Tkach has been with Rodale since 2001, most recently serving as Organic Gardening’s Associtate Publisher, starting in 2009. Tkach reports to Chris Lambiase, Senior Vice President, Group Publishing Director.

“A powerful advocate for a healthy, active lifestyle, Jeff embodies the spirit we value at Rodale, and he uses this passion to cultivate true partnerships with advertisers,” said Lambiase. “Thanks to his keen eye for brand development, Jeff is supporting more than the bottom line; he is crafting a new breed of magazine that engages ad partners and their audiences beyond the printed pages.”

Tkach’s appointment is effective immediately.

Last month, Sarah Palin blasted Newsweek for publishing the article, “Why Are Obama’s Critics So Dumb?” by Andrew Sullivan. She called Sullivan a “kook” and obviously missed the point of the piece. Fine. This is what she does — laments the “lame stream media” without ever understanding what she’s talking about. But today Palin has an article in Newsweek, about raising her son Trig. What changed? Nothing, really.

Palin, who was finally fading from the headlines, had a chance to put herself back in them with an article that someone else most likely wrote for her. One would think that if she was so angry at Newsweek she wouldn’t give the magazine the satisfaction, but that’s not the way she operates. Palin has shown for years now that she will do anything to remain in the press, so why not?

For Newsweek this was a no brainer (pun fully intended). The magazine under Tina Brown has been all about attention-grabbing items, and getting Palin to pen an article for the very magazine she recently attacked is par for the course.

Read more

Here’s a look at what FishbowlNY stories made the most buzz this week.

1. Another Brilliant Businessweek Cover, February 2
2. Former Harper’s Bazaar Intern Sues Hearst, February 1
3. New Details Emerge in Greg Kelly (left) Alleged Rape Case, January 30
4. Good News: More People are Visiting Newspaper Websites, February 1
5. Veteran Jock Bob Shannon Remains a No-Show for WCBS-FM Listeners, January 31
6. And the Winner of New York’s Best Radio Team… January 27
7. Reports Say Greg Kelly Had Consensual Sex with Rape Accuser, January 27

 

Keep up-to-date with the latest FishbowlNY news. Click here to sign-up for the FishbowlNY daily newsletter, bringing you our articles each afternoon directly to your inbox.