BREAKING NEWS

Sunday 1 November 2009

Queer Media in Trouble?

Back in 2007 Attitude magazine found itself in a spot of bother. Issues didn't appear, subscribers didn't get their edition and it looked like the magazine was over. It wasn't, it made a come back and seems to have gone from strength to strength in terms of the quality of content. According to their own website, they are now the UKs best selling gay magazine. Diva trundles along as the Millivres Lesbian magazine whilst Gay Times (the Millivres gay male magazine) had a mini re-launch this month following a new editor taking the helm. These things are always personal but I wasn't impressed. It tried to be youthful but it was kinda like the site of me at a rave now. Just plain wrong. At the same time, the magazine seems to have junked the news style content which is why I (and I suspect others) traditionally subscribed to GT (and I subscribed to Attitude for the light content and pretty pictures). GT feels muddled and confused as to its identity. other magazines such as AXM came and went. AXM is now an online magazine but it's never moved past issue 1.

The new(ish) editor of GT is also the editor of Pink Paper. This was the Millivres news freesheet until this Summer when it suspended the print edition and has gone purely online. At the time they said they'd be back in a print edition when the economy improved but I'd be amazed if that happened. The website contineus to be updated and it seems pretty good but personally I still prefer Pink News for online stuff.

Add to these tales of media woe, The Advocate. The Advocate is an iconic US based magazine. The cost of subscribing from the UK is slightly bonkers so I've never bothered but I do pick up a copy while over in the States. Slimmer and more cerebral than its UK cousins it's been announced today that is is to be no more (sort of). It's now going to be included as a free 'insert' into Out which is more of a gay fashion/celebrity magazine owned by the same company.

Blogs and new media are transforming the way we learn about news, and engage in comment/analysis but I'm sad to see these magazines go. Maybe I'm just a Luddite.

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