US newspaper supplements thrive

Posted by Jeffrey Blyth on 21 March 2006 at 13:17
Tags: Journalism, United States

Weekend magazines are proving to be more popular – and profitable – that any other newspaper spin-offs in the United States these days.

Most weekend papers in the US are stuffed with supplements. Many are out-performing standalone magazines in ad pages and revenue. Ad pages for example last year were up a collective 9 per cent, compared to only a small uptick of 0.5 per cent in regular magazines.
This year, already, ad pages are up almost 15 per cent. The same is true with ad income.

The circulation of some – because they are included in so many weekend papers – is phenomenal. Parade, the grand-daddy of them all, launched back in 1941 and still going strong, with a circulation of more than 34 million and an estimated readership of 78 million. That’s because it’s included in no less than 350 newspapers every week. USA Weekend, the No 2, is published by Gannett and is included in 600 newspapers with a total circulation of 23 million. It claims almost 50 million readers.

Even relative newcomers are thriving. American Profile launched in 2000 and is now included in 1,200 mostly small-town papers with a combined circulation of 8 million. It’s a little reminiscent of an old-time Normal Rockwell painting, filled with recipes and hometown gossip.

One of the biggest successes has been the reincarnation of Life, once the biggest selling picture weekly in the US. Sometimes running to as few as 20 pages, Life is skinner than most. Nevertheless it claims a 35 per cent increase in ad pages in the first two months this year.

Now more and more papers are muscling in. The New York Times has just launched a supplement called Play devoted to sport, while the New York Post is trying out a super-glossy spin-off from its popular gossip column, Page Six. Page Six Magazine’s first issue ran to 76 pages crammed with photos and celebrity-oriented stories, plus 38 pages of ads. It could have stood up well on any news-stand against most of the popular, but pricey, celebrity mags.

Tags: Journalism, United States