Hearst Communications, Inc. president, Cathie Black, announced the closing of CosmoGirl!, last October. The end of this teen magazine indicates a sign of declining economic times, a shift in girls’ reading trends, or both. December will be the last issue.
Though nine-year-old CosmoGirl! was the largest newsstand selling, monthly teen magazine, ad pages fell 15.5% by October and circulation was down 1.4% at 1.4 million. Hearst folded three titles this year. The first was Quick & Simple, a women’s service magazine, the second, CosmoGirl! and the third, O at Home. CosmoGirl! is also the third Teen magazine to close in the last few years, following Elle Girl of Filipacchi Media, and Teen People, of Time, Inc. in 2006.
Ad pages for Hearst’s Seventeen were down by 8.8% and Conde Nast’s Teen Vogue were down by 5.8%. CosmoGirl! had been in third place of these top three teen magazines. Mediaweek’s senior editor, Lucia Moses, attributes the drop in teen print magazines to the internet’s success in reaching readers’ needs.
Teen magazines aren’t the only genres struggling. “A magazine is folding every week and this will accelerate,”said Michela O’Connor Abrams, President and Publisher of Dwell magazine and chairperson of the American Magazine Conference. Other magazines cut back this year include Conde Nast’s Men’s Vogue and Filipacchi Media’s Home.
This fall marks ten years since Atoosa Rubenstein and team created CosmoGirl! Rubenstein was the youngest Editor in Chief in the history of Hearst Magazines. “I was 26 years old and felt that smart girls with attitude needed a magazine that spoke directly to them,” said Rubenstein. She created the CosmoGirl! logo on her bedroom floor with lipstick tubes, markers, and a glue stick.
CosmoGirl! publisher, Vicki Wellington will work on a new Food Network Magazine starting this month, and editor, Susan Schulz will also continue at Hearst, working on special projects. CosmoGirl!.com will continue and subscribers will receive Seventeen instead.
Though nine-year-old CosmoGirl! was the largest newsstand selling, monthly teen magazine, ad pages fell 15.5% by October and circulation was down 1.4% at 1.4 million. Hearst folded three titles this year. The first was Quick & Simple, a women’s service magazine, the second, CosmoGirl! and the third, O at Home. CosmoGirl! is also the third Teen magazine to close in the last few years, following Elle Girl of Filipacchi Media, and Teen People, of Time, Inc. in 2006.
Ad pages for Hearst’s Seventeen were down by 8.8% and Conde Nast’s Teen Vogue were down by 5.8%. CosmoGirl! had been in third place of these top three teen magazines. Mediaweek’s senior editor, Lucia Moses, attributes the drop in teen print magazines to the internet’s success in reaching readers’ needs.
Teen magazines aren’t the only genres struggling. “A magazine is folding every week and this will accelerate,”said Michela O’Connor Abrams, President and Publisher of Dwell magazine and chairperson of the American Magazine Conference. Other magazines cut back this year include Conde Nast’s Men’s Vogue and Filipacchi Media’s Home.
This fall marks ten years since Atoosa Rubenstein and team created CosmoGirl! Rubenstein was the youngest Editor in Chief in the history of Hearst Magazines. “I was 26 years old and felt that smart girls with attitude needed a magazine that spoke directly to them,” said Rubenstein. She created the CosmoGirl! logo on her bedroom floor with lipstick tubes, markers, and a glue stick.
CosmoGirl! publisher, Vicki Wellington will work on a new Food Network Magazine starting this month, and editor, Susan Schulz will also continue at Hearst, working on special projects. CosmoGirl!.com will continue and subscribers will receive Seventeen instead.
FIRST HALF 2008 AD PAGES %CHNG
CosmoGirl! 298.23 -14.5
Seventeen 376.84 -5.7
Teen Vogue 517.81 4.5
FIRST HALF 2006 AD PAGES %CHNG
CosmoGirl! 363.56 4.0
ElleGirl 387.14 18.2
Seventeen 440.09 -2.7
Teen People 302.19 -14.4
Teen Vogue 486.24 12.4
Sources: www.mediaweek.com, www.folio.com, www.myspace.com
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