Magazine

A magazine is a periodical publication, which can be printed or digital, made regularly like every week, month, or quarter. It contains many types of stories and pictures about different topics. Magazines can be about anything—from science and art to hobbies and news. People read magazines to learn, be entertained, or find ideas for things to do.

Harper's Monthly, a literary and political force in the late 19th century[citation needed]

Magazines are paid for in a few ways. Some people buy them in stores, others pay to get them delivered to their homes each month, and many have ads that help pay for making the magazine. The way a magazine is made and what it talks about can change a lot. Some are for everyone, while others are just for certain groups like teachers or fans of a particular sport.

Having a picture on the cover of a print magazine used to mean that a person or event was very important. Today, magazines are still popular, and many people enjoy flipping through them to discover new things and read stories on topics they care about.

Term origin and definition

The word "magazine" comes from an Arabic word meaning "storehouse." It first described places where things like military supplies were kept.

When we talk about magazines as books, they are collections of articles. Unlike journals, which are for experts, magazines are for everyone. They cover many topics and are written in a way that is easy for anyone to understand. Magazines are usually shorter and more fun to read than journal articles.

Distribution

German print magazines

Print magazines can be sent to readers through the mail, sold at newsstands, bookstores, or other places, or given away for free at spots like libraries or train stations. Digital magazines can be shared using social media, email, news aggregators, or shown on a publication's website and in search engine results. There are three main ways magazines are sent out: paid, non-paid, and controlled.

In the paid model, readers buy the magazine either one issue at a time or by paying for a yearly subscription. This helps publishers know how many readers they have. In the non-paid model, magazines are given away for free, like in street boxes, on airplanes, or with other products. Since these are given to many people, publishers only know how many copies were given out, not who read them. The controlled model is used for special magazines, like those for certain jobs, and is given for free only to people who qualify. This makes sure ads reach the right readers and saves money on printing and sending.

History

The earliest example of magazines was Erbauliche Monaths Unterredungen, a literary and philosophy magazine, which was launched in 1663 in Germany. The Gentleman's Magazine, first published in 1731 in London was the first general-interest magazine. Edward Cave, who edited The Gentleman's Magazine under the pen name "Sylvanus Urban", was the first to use the term "magazine", on the analogy of a military storehouse.

Britain

The oldest consumer magazine still in print is The Scots Magazine, which was first published in 1739, though multiple changes in ownership and gaps in publication totalling over 90 years weaken that claim. Lloyd's List was founded in Edward Lloyd's England coffee shop in 1734; although its online platform is still updated daily, it has not been published as a printed magazine since 2013, when it ended print publication after 274 years.

France

Main articles: History of French journalism and History of journalism

La Gazette, 26 December 1786

Under the Ancien Régime, the most prominent magazines were Mercure de France, Journal des sçavans, founded in 1665 for scientists, and Gazette de France, founded in 1631. Jean Loret was one of France's first journalists. He disseminated the weekly news of music, dance and Parisian society from 1650 until 1665 in verse, in what he called a gazette burlesque, assembled in three volumes of La Muse historique (1650, 1660, 1665). The French press lagged a generation behind the British, for they catered to the needs of the aristocracy, while the newer British counterparts were oriented toward the middle and working classes.

Periodicals were censored by the central government in Paris. They were not totally quiescent politically—often they criticized Church abuses and bureaucratic ineptitude. They supported the monarchy and they played at most a small role in stimulating the revolution. During the Revolution, new periodicals played central roles as propaganda organs for various factions. Jean-Paul Marat (1743–1793) was the most prominent editor. His L'Ami du peuple advocated vigorously for the rights of the lower classes against the enemies of the people Marat hated; it closed when he was assassinated. After 1800 Napoleon reimposed strict censorship.

Magazines flourished after Napoleon left in 1815. Most were based in Paris and most emphasized literature, poetry and stories. They served religious, cultural and political communities. In times of political crisis they expressed and helped shape the views of their readership and thereby were major elements in the changing political culture. For example, there were eight Catholic periodicals in 1830 in Paris. None were officially owned or sponsored by the Church and they reflected a range of opinion among educated Catholics about current issues, such as the 1830 July Revolution that overthrew the Bourbon monarchy. Several were strong supporters of the Bourbon kings, but all eight ultimately urged support for the new government, putting their appeals in terms of preserving civil order. They often discussed the relationship between church and state. Generally, they urged priests to focus on spiritual matters and not engage in politics. Historian M. Patricia Dougherty says this process created a distance between the Church and the new monarch and enabled Catholics to develop a new understanding of church-state relationships and the source of political authority.

Turkey

General

The Moniteur Ottoman was a gazette written in French and first published in 1831 on the order of Mahmud II. It was the first official gazette of the Ottoman Empire, edited by Alexandre Blacque at the expense of the Sublime Porte. Its name perhaps referred to the French newspaper Le Moniteur Universel. It was issued weekly. Takvim-i vekayi was published a few months later, intended as a translation of the Moniteur into Ottoman Turkish. After having been edited by former Consul for Denmark "M. Franceschi", and later on by "Hassuna de Ghiez", it was lastly edited by Lucien Rouet. However, facing the hostility of embassies, it was closed in the 1840s.

Satire

The Olympic Number of Life, 10 July 1924. Issues of general interest magazines focused on a specific subject were referred to as "numbers" and featured cover art relevant to the given topic, in this case the 1924 Summer Olympics.

Satirical magazines of Turkey have a long tradition. One of the earliest satirical magazines was Diyojen which was launched in 1870. There are around 20 satirical magazines; the leading ones are Penguen (70,000 weekly circulation), LeMan (50,000) and Uykusuz. Historical examples include Oğuz Aral's magazine Gırgır (which reached a circulation of 750,000 in the 1970s) and Marko Paşa (launched in 1946). Others include L-Manyak and Lombak.

United States

Further information: History of American journalism and Mass media and American politics

Colonial America

Publishing was a very expensive industry in colonial times. Paper and printer's ink were taxed imported goods and their quality was inconsistent. Interstate tariffs and a poor road system hindered distribution, even on a regional scale. Many magazines were launched, most failing within a few editions, but publishers kept trying. Benjamin Franklin is said to have envisioned one of the first magazines of the American colonies in 1741, the General Magazine and Historical Chronicle. The Pennsylvania Magazine, edited by Thomas Paine, ran only for a short time but was a very influential publication during the Revolutionary War. The final issue containing the text of the Declaration of Independence was published in 1776.

Late 19th century

In the mid-19th century, monthly magazines gained popularity. They were general interest to begin, containing some news, vignettes, poems, history, political events, and social discussion. Unlike newspapers, they were more of a monthly record of current events along with entertaining stories, poems, and pictures. The first periodicals to branch out from news were Harper's and The Atlantic, which focused on fostering the arts. Both Harper's and The Atlantic persist to this day, with Harper's being a cultural magazine and The Atlantic focusing mainly on world events. Early publications of Harper's even held famous works such as early publications of Moby Dick or famous events such as the laying of the world's first transatlantic telegraph cable; however, the majority of early content was trickle down from British events.

Actress Fatima Rushdi on the cover of Al-Kawakeb magazine, 12 September 1932

The development of the magazines stimulated an increase in literary criticism and political debate, moving towards more opinionated pieces from the objective newspapers. The increased time between prints and the greater amount of space to write provided a forum for public arguments by scholars and critical observers. The early periodical predecessors to magazines started to evolve to modern definition in the late 1800s. Works slowly became more specialized and the general discussion or cultural periodicals were forced to adapt to a consumer market which yearned for more localization of issues and events.

Progressive era: 1890s–1920s

Further information: Muckrakers and Mass media and American politics

Mass-circulation magazines became much more common after 1900, some with circulations in the hundreds of thousands of subscribers. Some passed the million-mark in the 1920s. It was an age of mass media. Because of the rapid expansion of national advertising, the cover price fell sharply to about 10 cents. One cause was the heavy coverage of corruption in politics, local government and big business, especially by Muckrakers. They were journalists who wrote for popular magazines to expose social and political sins and shortcomings. They relied on their own investigative journalism reporting; muckrakers often worked to expose social ills and corporate and political corruption. Muckraking magazines–notably McClure's–took on corporate monopolies and crooked political machines while raising public awareness of chronic urban poverty, unsafe working conditions, and social issues such as child labor.

The journalists who specialized in exposing waste, corruption, and scandal operated at the state and local level, like Ray Stannard Baker, George Creel, and Brand Whitlock. Others, including Lincoln Steffens, exposed political corruption in many large cities; Ida Tarbell went after John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Company. Samuel Hopkins Adams in 1905 showed the fraud involved in many patent medicines, Upton Sinclair's 1906 novel The Jungle gave a horrid portrayal of how meat was packed, and, also in 1906, David Graham Phillips unleashed a blistering indictment of the U.S. Senate. Roosevelt gave these journalists their nickname when he complained that they were not being helpful by raking up all the muck.

1930s–1990s

21st century

According to the Research Department of Statista, closures of magazines outnumbered launches in North America during 2009. Although both figures declined during 2010–2015, launches outnumbered closures in each of those years, sometimes by a 3:1 ratio. Focusing more narrowly, MediaFinder.com found that 93 new magazines were launched during the first six months of 2014, while only 30 closed in that time frame. The category which produced the most new publications was "Regional interest", of which six new magazines were launched, including 12th & Broad and Craft Beer & Brewing. However, two magazines had to change their print schedules. Johnson Publishing's Jet stopped printing regular issues, making the transition to digital format, though still printing an annual print edition. Ladies' Home Journal stopped their monthly schedule and home delivery for subscribers to become a quarterly newsstand-only special interest publication.

According to statistics from the end of 2013, subscription levels for 22 of the top 25 magazines declined from 2012 to 2013, with just Time, Glamour and ESPN The Magazine gaining numbers. However, by 2024, some titles, notably outdoors magazines, appeared to be growing in popularity. Furthermore, recent research (2025) has shown that print magazines are seen as more trustworthy, with better quality journalism.

Women's magazines

The "seven sisters" of American women's magazines are Ladies' Home Journal, Good Housekeeping, McCall's, Woman's Day, Redbook, Family Circle, and Better Homes and Gardens. Some magazines, among them Godey's Lady's Book and Harper's Bazaar, were intended exclusively for a female audience, emphasizing the traditional gender roles of the 19th century. Harper's Bazaar was the first to focus exclusively on couture fashion, fashion accessories and textiles. The inclusion of didactic content about housekeeping may have increased the appeal of the magazine for a broader audience of women and men concerned about the frivolity of a fashion magazine.

Types

There are many different kinds of magazines. Some focus on special subjects like jobs, new discoveries, or topics for women, while others talk about things like religion or popular culture. Magazines can be very serious, full of jokes, or even funny and full of satire.

Cover

Further information: cover art

Appearing on the cover of a magazine is sometimes seen as a special honor or even a historic moment. For example, people might say they "appeared on the cover of Time" or "Rolling Stone".

The English Wikipedia has several lists that show who and what have been on the covers of famous magazines, such as: