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Neither rain nor thunder nor lightning could keep a record-breaking crowd of 400-plus from being spirited and enthusiastic at CRMA’s 25th Annual Conference in Minneapolis in May, labeled by many as “the best ever.” There was also sunshine, by the way. At each Annual Conference, CRMA elects and installs the new Board. Since there is momentum rolling with new projects, the officers will serve another term: President Jim Fitzpatrick, San Diego; Vice President and now President elect, Pat Mathews, Mpls/St. Paul; Secretary/Treasurer John Palumbo, Rhode Island Monthly; Vice President Steve Rivera, Diablo, and Past President Rob Martinelli, Delaware Today. Directors include: Wick Allison, D Magazine;
John Carroll, Chicago; Marian Hettel, Philadelphia; Susie Love, EMMIS;
Robert Martinelli, Delaware Today; John Milliken, Columbus Monthly;
Michael Mims, The Annual City Magazine Awards competition was again judged by the University of Missouri School of Journalism, with new coordinator Prof. Steve Weinberg announcing winners at the banquet. There were 28 winning magazines from among 880 entries. This year, 63 gold, bronze and silver awards were given in 21 categories recognizing excellence in design, writing, feature stories, photography and special issues. General excellence winners are: Cincinnati, Memphis, 64, D Magazine, Columbus Monthly, Indianapolis Monthly, Texas Monthly, Boston Magazine and Atlanta. New this year, the University of Missouri has set up a website that features winning entries. Also, a press release, list of winners and judges, and photos taken at the awards banquet have been posted. CRMA welcomes associate members Advanced Response System of Minnesota, BPA International of NYC, Datatrax Publishing Systems, Inc. of Connecticut, Internet Production, Inc. of Minnesota and Quebecor World Printing of Canada. They were among vendors who showcased services in an informative exhibit hall enjoyed during session breaks and mealtimes. Also in the exhibit hall, University of Missouri journalism student Dierdra Yates presented her paper, “Content Analysis of the Visual Inclusion/Exclusion of African Americans in City and Regional Magazines.” For a copy of the 27-page report, contact Yates (314/381-9748, djyf7f@mizzou.edu). Additional conference highlights: A cocktail party hosted by Mpls/St. Paul at the Walker Art Museum, a cocktail party hosted by Minnesota Monthly on the 50th floor of a downtown skyscraper during a dramatic thunderstorm, Seija Goldstein’s Financial Standards Session, optional advertising and marketing workshops, Meet the Experts, six concurrent tracks and networking at events thanks to sponsors like Fineline Digital, CPC Associates, DialAmerica and Brown Printing. During lunch one day, members heard from Bill Gloede, editor of Media Week and Editor & Publisher magazines, who has 22 years of experience in advertising and marketing. He noted that the number of pages in most city magazines is holding up, despite the “recession” from dot coms dying. “City magazines have an advantage because people know who you are and define themselves by you,” he said. “Know your readers and your customers inside-out, and don’t be high brow.” Gloede said national magazines “have seen better times.” He added that there will be a lot of ownership transactions later in 2001. “City magazines have been wise about the Internet—because they have largely ignored it!” Gloede said. “There’s a lot of money out there, but it’s looking for a home. The future looks fine for city magazines, but you have to put your building blocks in order.” In his welcoming remarks, Fitzpatrick noted how CRMA has grown from 36 members in 1992 at the height of the last big advertising recession to 92 in 2001. When he moved from the national magazine Entrepreneur to owning San Diego, Fitzpatrick noted how readers “welcomed me to see what I was going to do with their magazine. People feel ownership of a city magazine.” Fitzpatrick pushed for the 2001 Erdos & Morgan Study of Local Influence and Involvement (see related article) and for a media focus group study, which showed “the mountain we have to climb.” Fitzpatrick showed “eight minutes out of three hours of very painful videotape,” in which the group called city magazines “touristy” but not “edgy.” A marketing effort has begun to combat misconceptions. “It’s the easy things that we can afford to do to start to fix the problem—the low-hanging fruit,” he said. Some PR measures CRMA is implementing include: a four-page Ad Age advertising special section in June and repeated in the fall which 20 members bought into, City & Regional Magazine Network materials sent to members and a press release to trade media, a toll-free number for external inquiries, CRMA info sent to 60 ad agencies, press releases, exhibiting at Magazine Day again in NYC, a CRMA sell sheet and a Publishers’ Roundtable photo in Ad Age. Other key players are Palm Springs Life Publisher Milt Jones, who got this campaign started, and Marketing Committee Chair John Palumbo of Rhode Island Monthly, who join others seeking to enhance CRMA’s image to attract advertisers. Honoring a Founding Member’s Memory Sylvan H. Meyer, 79, a founding member of CRMA, died April 8, 2001 in his mountain home in Georgia, following an extended fight with cancer. At CRMA’s awards banquet, Mpls/St. Paul magazine Publisher Burton D. Cohen—also a CRMA founder—paid a touching tribute to Meyer. He commented that the storm punctuated with lightning and thunder during a conference cocktail party was “Sylvan reminding everyone in his booming voice that they had better uphold the journalistic standards that make CRMA publications the quality magazines that they are.” The native Georgian was a community activist while editor of The Daily Times from 1950-1969. He left to become editor of The Miami News in Florida. In 1975, Meyer started Miami-South Florida (now Miami) magazine—during which time he served as CRMA president and received a Lifetime Achievement Award. He sold the magazine in 1987 and retired to the northeast Georgia mountains. Survivors include wife of 54 years Anne Heinemann Meyer, a daughter, sons, grandchildren and other family members. In lieu of a funeral, a private gathering was held to remember him at Sylvan Meyer Overlook. Donations can be made in his memory to the Sylvan Meyer Newsroom, School of Journalism and Communications, Florida International University, North Campus, AC II, Room 335, Miami, FL 33181 (Attention: Dean J. Arthur Heise).
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June
2001