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September 7, 2008

WSJ: The Magazine's Inaugural Issue

The Wall Street Journal debuted its magazine section this weekend (or, here in Chicago, a bit earlier than that). Gelf took a gander at a copy of the glossy insert—our verdict? It's Parade for superrich investment bankers, rife with coverage of the rich and stylish and consumer goods you can't afford. If you were expecting, say, a rightward-leaning New York Times Magazine, look elsewhere.

WSJ.
WSJ divides most of its content into two segments, one labeled "Hunter" and the other, "Gatherer." The difference between the two is not explained, though seeing as "Gatherer" includes pieces on collecting American folk art and designer jewelry, we'll guess it has something to do with gathering really expensive stuff. If that's not enough to make you feel poor, take a look at the ads, which include the first full-page magazine ad for Maserati that we've ever seen, and an ad trumping the "residences" at the Chicago Spire, a giant phallus-like luxury condo tower currently being planned for downtown Chicago.

The magazine also asks the tough questions—about why "we" spend so much money on dogs. It has a home and garden section—that focuses on the "scaling down" of "trophy homes." It has an event listing, of the type that you'd find in any number of free weeklies—except this event listing is global. If anything, WSJ is a comprehensive cultural guide for the so-called global elite, and its tone seems to imply that its readers are self-aware members of this group. The rest of us can just go read Parade.







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Comments

- Media
- posted on Sep 10, 08
David Downs

The new mag also ran a stale profile of Palin just days after her bombshell VP announcement.

LAME!

Magazine deadlines mean the Palin thing must've been done weeks before and they couldn't pull it when real news hit.

I, for one, look forward to more relevant, critically informed work from the brinksmen and women at WSJ Lagazine.

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