Marketing publisher denies crossing the ad-editorial line

Readers who are subscribers to Marketing magazine recently received a free sample copy of the June issue of the new, redesigned Chatelaine. Along with it came a letter from Marketing editor and publisher Christopher Loudon that said "The secret to Chatelaine’s success is its deep and sustained knowledge of Canadian women." and urged the Marketing audience to check it out.

This raised some question of a conflict of interest in the mind of Masthead magazine's editor, Marco Ursi, apparently. He posted an item on Masthead's forum that reprinted his e-mail to Loudon and Loudon's reply. Herewith:

Ursi: I think some people would see this as a conflict of interest, since Marketing regularly covers the magazine industry. Of course, Marketing and Chatelaine are both owned by Rogers, but such an explicit crossing of [the] ad/editorial [line] is sure to raise some eyebrows.

Loudon: For clarification, Chatelaine approached us, as an advertiser, with the request to distribute the June issue.

As you know, we frequently distribute complete issues of magazines (and other promotional materials) to our readers on behalf of a wide spectrum of advertising clients, including Rogers. Among recent examples, we distributed the debut issue of MORE for Transcontinental.

With regard to the accompanying letter, such is a service I would, as Marketing’s publisher, consider for any advertiser. As you can see from the letter’s content, it was neither an endorsement nor a recommendation, but strictly a letter of introduction to the redesigned and revitalized Chatelaine, encouraging our readers to peruse the issue and judge it for themselves.

Also, I think it is important to consider Marketing’s audience: an intensely media-savvy readership that fully recognizes the difference between an advertising initiative (as this clearly was) and an editorial recommendation.