“The clock's ticking on Playboy, folks," said Robin Wauters in TechCrunch. The granddaddy of men's magazines is losing money thanks to the advertising slump, online competition, and other factors. And if anything will seal the monthly print magazine's doom, it's interim CEO Jerome Kern's misguided plan to win back fleeing subscribers by charging more and printing fewer issues per year.
Kern isn't just hiking the $5.99-an-issue price and combining the July and August issues to save printing costs, said Lisa Gutierrez in the Kansas City Star. He's also updating the magazine to "attract young readers." Playboy playmates may indeed be the next victims of the recession, but the magazine won't give up without a fight.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Are bonds worth investing in?the explainer They can diversify your portfolio and tend to be a safer investment than stocks
-
Elon has his 'Legion.' How will Republicans encourage other Americans to have babies?Today's Big Question The pronatalist movement finds itself in power
-
How to travel with your dogThe Week Recommends These tips will help both of you have a great time
