We don’t choose our partners to change the world, we choose them because we’re running a business. I guess it sounds cynical if you believe that to run a business to make money is cynical. But that’s what I’m paid to do.I thought this was refreshingly honest and BS-free. At least she doesn't claim to be a true believer; she's there to make money and turn the brand around. If that means pandering to social conservatives, by god they'll be the best panderers around.
Laggards possess almost no opinion leadership. They are the most localite of all adopters in their outlook. Many are near isolates in the social networks of their system. The point of reference for the laggard is what has been done in the past. Decisions are often made in terms of what has been done previously, and these individuals interact primarily with others who also have relatively traditional values. Laggards tend to be suspicious of change agents." (Diffusion of Innovations, 5th ed. p. 284)Sound like anyone you know? When you hear O'Reilly dismiss online critics as bloggers, the laggards are the people who smile and nod. You hear that and you get upset, because blogs for you are old hat.
“What if we just go after them?” said Ms. Berner, who has a framed photograph of President Obama in her office. But testing the right-wing handbook idea with cover lines like advocating prayer in schools flopped.In that passage you see confirmation that Reader's Digest is too late to go after even the early majority, i.e. the conservative reader with some degree of opinion leadership. Those people have already adopted the internet. Maybe they read National Review or the Weekly Standard, but they are online. They've adopted the internet, and once anyone adopts it, there's no going back to print.
“What worked was conservative values,” Ms. Berner said.
Readers who have instinctively disliked Reader's Digest will have their worst suspicions confirmed in "American Dreamers," a new book from former Digest managing editor Peter Canning. Among other things, Canning details how, in the 1940s and 50s, the State Department and CIA fed content to the Digest and helped its international editions thrive. He also notes the magazine's numerous pro-Vietnam War editorials, and the way Nixon speeches found their way into the magazine under the byline "The Editors." Further, Canning dishes a good deal of dirt about founders Dewitt and Lila Wallace's odd sex lives, and he digs into the story behind the sex discrimination suit filed against the Digest in 1976, among the largest ever, in which 2,600 female employees were awarded more than $1.5 million.posted by Miko at 12:49 PM on June 19, 2009 [10 favorites]
“It’s an unabashed commitment to and focus on a market that’s ignored but is incredibly powerful,” she said.Didn't they hear that Bush is out of office and McCain didn't win?
The editorial team had even considered turning Reader’s Digest into a right-wing handbook, a companion to Fox News. “It was a supposition,” Ms. Berner said, that half the country is annoyed that Barack Obama is president.
“What if we just go after them?” said Ms. Berner, who has a framed photograph of President Obama in her office. But testing the right-wing handbook idea with cover lines like advocating prayer in schools flopped.
“What worked was conservative values,” Ms. Berner said.
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I tried to work this into a "Humor in Uniform" joke, but came up empty.
posted by jquinby at 10:30 AM on June 19, 2009 [3 favorites]