MediaWeek Identifies Top 10 Magazines for Advertisers

by lisa ~ March 30, 2009

The Economist, the British news and political affairs weekly, tops MediaWeek’s list of the 10 hottest magazines of 2009. With ad revenue of $131.5 million (up 25.5% from the prior year) and 2,468 ad pages (up 4.4%), The Economist’s U.S. circulation was up 9.2% to 786,977.

MediaWeek says its Hot List is calculated using a subjective formula that “recognizes consumer magazines with a recent track record of standout advertising revenue and page performance” in combination with newsstand sales and the opinions of influential media buyers and their clients.

Of The Economist, MediaWeek wrote: “It’s (still) the economy, stupid. With politics and business hotter than ever, British news/business sensation holds top spot…no surprise rivals are copying its formula.”

Headquartered in London with editorial offices in New York and San Francisco, The Economist is notable because its reporters are not given bylines. The publication’s own explanation is that it “speaks with a collective voice,” meaning “that what is written is more important than who writes it.”

Unlike the typical American style of news journalism, where reporters ostensibly give objective reviews of events, this well-respected import takes sides. Whether or not readers agree with them, The Economist’s opinions and even its biases are transparent.

At the other end of the spectrum is timely newcomer Every Day With Rachel Ray. “As dining out becomes a luxury, combo of lifestyle edit with quick, easy recipes that help home cooks stretch food dollar makes the book really relevant,” MediaWeek said.

To read the complete special report, “Magazine Hot List 2009: Top 10 Magazines,” click here: http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/content_display/special-reports/magazine-hot-list/e3i30940ed405b2e184e7010cadcb85f0b1

Lisa Tibbitts (Lisa.Tibbitts@Me.com) is a New York-based corporate communications professional with an MBA in marketing. Follow her on Twitter: http://twitter.com/FinancialPR.