How a Nude Photo of Kim Kardashian Will Attract Serious Readers to W Magazine
Did the newly reinvented, "editorial-driven" W Magazine just put out an issue wrapped in a nude photo of Kim Kardashian? Yes, indeed. But it's not just any old artsy-fashiony naked picture of the reality show darling. It's actually a work of art that really could work to draw serious readers.
Stay with me for a minute.
Back in April, I reported on the rash of nude celebrities and models popping up in the pages of fashion mags from here to Australia. From the fleshy delights of The Gossip's lead singer Beth Ditto holding a bit of pink tulle over her lady parts to Harper's Bazaar's umm, spread, featuring Kim Kardashian and Joy Bryant in all their un-photoshopped glory, each magazine's editorial team was crossing their fingers and toes that tapping the undeniable urges of the gawking public would boost their bottom lines.
It's no secret that ad sales for fashion/lifestyle magazines were in free fall last year, and in many cases the double-digit declines left publishers scrambling for ad-generated revenue -- albeit online rather than in print. By trotting out provocative pics (for free!) on their sites, fashion magazines hoped they'd build traffic alongside their brands. The problem is that for many of these mags, online editorial is an oxymoron (I'm looking at you Vogue.com â€"- great photos, but not more than a tiny taste for the well-written, in-depth feature articles you publish in print.)
Now W. Ad pages had fallen almost 50 percent from 2008 to 2009, to about 1,050 pages, according to Media Industry Newsletter. It was one of the hardest-hit titles for its parent Condé Nast. Yet its size â€"- too big to fit in a newsstand rack â€"- made it less competitive with other style rags and more subscriber driven. Something had to be done quickly to salvage the venerable compendium of fashion.
Enter newly appointed chief Stefano Tonchi, who set about giving the magazine a makeover immediately. Tonchi, the former editor of T: The New York Times Style Magazine admitted he never read a word of W before he took the job, but he certainly loved the quality and presentation of photos.
So without tampering with W's size or compromising the glorious photography, he got straight to the business of boosting editorial while indulging the creative freedom that comes from not having to compete on the newsstand. NY Magazine wrote, "He doesn't need an instantly recognizable face to move issues and can give that slot to relative unknowns." Hence the giant September issue featuring eight somewhat unrecognizable up-and-comers in provocative "almost kissing" poses (with all their clothes on).
Two months later, Kardashian's naked under the logo, her girls and nether region cleverly concealed by coverlines screaming "It's all about me. I mean you. I mean me." How is this not a lame attempt to grab eyeballs?
Two reasons:
One, as I mentioned before, its art. Barbara Kruger, an American collage artist best known for her layered photographs, designed those coverlines. As her Web site says, "Much of her text questions the viewer about feminism, classicism, consumerism, and individual autonomy and desire, although her black-and-white images are culled from the mainstream magazines that sell the very ideas she is disputing." Tonchi couldn't have found a better way to show that W is well aware of the effects of mainstream media, yet at the same time elevated the one of the crassest products of our culture -â€" the reality show -â€" to art through Kruger's work.
Two, the article on Kardashian is written by W's editor at large Lynn Hirschberg. The former NYT Magazine writer ended her tour of duty there with an explosive feature profile of Grammy-nominated rapper M.I.A. (which vexed the singer so much, she tweeted Hirschberg's personal telephone number). Thus far for W, Hirschberg has turned out profiles of those eight cover lovelies in the September issue, talked to Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams about messy sex, among other things, and also wrote a compelling portrait of Aaron Sorkin, screenwriter of the Facebook movie.
This is exactly the approach Tonchi wants to pursue. Add a strong element of well-written (albeit controversial) editorial, keep the glorious photography -- oh and lest we forget, sprinkle in the latest news on shoes, bags and clothes. So far, it seems to be coming together splendidly. Not to mention creating plenty of buzz.
Images via W, Celebuzz
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