With audiences as diverse as Union Square at rush hour, women’s mags have their work cut out for them. But there’s big money to be made in those rare idle moments when we indulge ourselves with thoughts of fashion, celebrities and raw sex.
Elle wants to be a smart read for women with a brain and a career, but it’s close to losing all appeal for anyone who isn’t deciding whether to get collagen injections. Its “Women in Hollywood” cover is mired in the muck of that obsession with youth and beauty – fronting mere babe Scarlett Johansson – while burying older and wiser actresses Diane Lane and Patricia Heaton inside.
Think of InStyle as Us Weekly but with detailed information about where to purchase that starlet’s handbag. So what if you can’t tell the difference between the ads and the pictures? The point is that the editors seamlessly bring together celebrity and conspicuous consumption. And who better reflects all this superficiality than cover girl Jessica Simpson, who says, “People just love it when I make an ass of myself, and I do it often.”
Cosmopolitan could easily rank as one of the silliest reads in the history of magazines. But that doesn’t mean that the latest issue of Cosmo doesn’t have a few benefits. Reading the November issue – dubbed the “Sex Issue” (truth be told, a label that could be slapped on virtually every issue of Cosmo) – allows you to fantasize harmlessly about engaging in the type of conduct and relationships that in reality would leave you with a good chance of either catching a disease or being murdered. Just revel in the skankiness of it all.
The New Yorker profiles super-sports agent Scott Boras, baseball owners bete noir and the man behind A-Rod’s $250 million deal. With the Yankees in turmoil, he’s trying to find a way for A-Rod to wiggle out of his contract, the mag reports. Skip the piece about Mitt Romney and Mormonism and turn to Bill Buford’s fascinating story about the history of chocolate.
New York dazzles the eye with its profiles of 25 revolutionary designers, but the piece on a Manhattan private eye’s claim he uncovered the identity of skyjacker D.B. Cooper is what’s worth the newsstand price.
Newsweek has an extensive investigation on the massive jihadist movement in Pakistan. The story is especially prescient given last week’s deadly bombing attack that nearly killed former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.
Time explores the latest science around birth order. While we thought the original premise of the piece might be boring, Time actually makes it interesting by exploring the characteristics of many famous families such as the Bushes, the Baldwins and the Kennedys.