The shutout blues

Occasionally, resentment bubbles to the surface about Canada's National Magazine Awards and who wins, who loses, who gets nominated, who doesn't. Apparently the same resentment and puzzlement is felt in the U.S. about the American Society of Magazine Editors (ASME) National Magazine Awards. For example, a short item in WWD.com, asking why Hachette Filippachi magazines such as Elle and Premiere seem to be routinely left out of the nominations.

"What, exactly, does the American Society of Magazine Editors have against Hachette Filipacchi Media?" asks Jeff Bercovici in his Memo Pad column.

One argument made is that working against them is the nature of the HF titles -- mostly enthusiast and shelter titles. But this is dismissed since other such titles from other publishers make the cut. Another argument is the cost-conscious nature of HF, with corners cut on paper and production values, and high advertising ratios."

Even more interesting is that some editors get rewards for their award-winning ways: Wenner Media (Rolling Stone, US) contracted with Men's Journal editor Michael Caruso that they would pay $5,000 for every nomination and $10,000 for every win. (The only reason we know is that the departing Caruso sued last fall and the arrangement was revealed in court documents.)