Women's Magazines

Today More! magazine announced that it would cease  production. Sales of just under 10,000 are not enough to keep it going, 10,000 readers just aren't enough to attract the advertisers, who make the magazine profitable, giving enough return to pay it's writers properly and make a significant profit for it's investors.

I heard the news, when my daughter texted that she wouldn't be able to do work experience at More! now but that Suzanne Moore had done a good job of defending the magazine on twitter. A blog called Vagenda Magazine rejoiced.  They believe More! is responsible for misrepresenting how women look and therefore this is a victory for feminism.  Suzanne Moore pointed out that any loss of places that female journalists can be paid for their writing is definitely not a victory for feminism.

More! was one of the reasons that my daughter wanted to become a journalist.  When she started reading More! as a step up from Heat I wasn't horrified that she would become body dysmorphic, just as when she wanted a Barbie I didn't think she would aspire to a head 6 times too large for her waist and breasts that would make her permanently fall forwards off her impossibly tiny feet.  I thought she might read the problem page, look at the pictures of clothes, learn to use make up in a better way than I ever had and possibly even learn from the position of the week page that there really aren't that many to choose from.  I thought all this would happen because that's what I learned from reading SHE magazine (the magazine for women who juggle their lives, which in my head I always changed to women who juggle knives!)  SHE also had the best crossword.  What I didn't expect was for the magazine to help her find a political voice.  I didn't expect that she would aspire to write articles about difficult subjects for everyday women to read that would change their lives or even change the world.  I didn't expect that she would enjoy the articles so much that she would ask for a subscription for Christmas.

SHE magazine closed in 2011 when it's readership fell to 144,583.  So, if teenagers aren't getting their sex tips from magazines that are written by journalists who have learnt how to write in a clear, concise way, and have their facts checked by a team of lawyers, where are they getting them?  I know they aren't going to the library to search Jackie Collins books for the pages that fall open (although they probably have read 50 Shades) and I very much doubt they are looking up all the rude words in the dictionary and cross referencing them until they finally get to something they understand.  They are probably getting everything they need to know about how they want to look and act from the internet and anyone can write anything they like on the internet - l know, I'm living proof. These teenagers might stumble upon a feminist blog like Vagenda or the F-Word but they just as likely to stumble upon something dangerous, scary or misogynistic.  There are loads of websites and blogs that glamourise anorexia and bulimia (I know because my daughter showed me when she was 14)

As a feminist, I am sad that More! has gone from our magazine stands.  Women want to be able to read about things they are interested in, that represent their lives and I think the greater number of magazines that are factually checked with a diverse range of views and the occasional brilliant article that might change the world or just one woman's life, the better.    

I just hope the readership of Good Food Magazine doesn't drop too low.