5.1 Magazines

When Time cocreator Henry Luce launched Sports Illustrated in 1954, his staff had doubted its chances. Spectator sports had not yet reached the level of popularity they have today, and the new magazine failed to make a profit for its first 12 years of publication. As television brought spectator sports to the growing suburbs, however, their popularity quickly rose, and Sports Illustrated became a success. Managing editor Andre Laguerre assembled a staff of talented, loyal writers and instituted the extensive use of color photographs, developing the basis for the format the magazine still uses.

In 1964, Laguerre initiated the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition as a way of increasing sales during the winter months when fewer things happened in the sports world. Putting model Babette March on the cover in a bikini helped the magazine sell, and the swimsuit edition became an annual tradition. Filled with pictures of models in revealing swimwear, the issue generates its share of controversy but it remains the magazine’s best-selling edition annually.

Magazine publishers have struggled with competing for advertising dollars for years.

Although the news appears grim for an industry that has survived since the 17th century, magazines may not be truly obsolete. Many analysts say hopeful that the magazine industry, with its long, complex past, has simply experienced a slump. So, many have begun to wonder, what will the future of the magazine business hold?

Using Sports Illustrated as an indication, future magazines will serve as a product of cross-media integration, particularly between print and television. This trend suggests that the best—and perhaps only—way for magazines to remain viable. They must gain an audience via another medium and then use that celebrity-driven status to sell the print product.

The magazine industry may change drastically over the next several years. Several variables, such as the Internet, a new generation of readers, the fluctuation of advertising costs, and the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic may affect this evolution. Questions remain about whether the magazine industry can reestablish itself as a dominant force in American culture amid these changes.