The FOLIO: Green Report

does the World really need another ‘green issue’? it’s been three Years since Vanity Fair—one of do to create a better environment—would outweigh its own the first mass market consumer magazines to tackle the issue carbon footprint. of global warming—published their first green issue. (VanDespite the onslaught of green issues—with recycled or ity Fair’s Conde Nast sibling Wired published one in May virgin paper—little more than 100 magazines print their issues on recycled paper in the United States, according to 2006 as well). And they’ve published one each year since. the Co-Op America’s Magazine Paper Project. [See Folio:’s Countless magazines big and small have followed. But Vanity Fair has also been on the leading edge of a report on green paper, page 29] But is bringing awareness to issues impacting the entroubling trend in the magazine industry. That is, preachvironment through editorial content ing green without practicing it. The enough to consider a magazine green? magazine’s green issue, for starters, is No, says Paglia. “When so much of not printed on recycled paper. Nor are Vanity Fair’s Green Issue bears the implicthe magazine’s 11 other issues. “Forgive it message of ‘Wake up! Do something! me for being less than thrilled about a –Jonathan Dorn Embrace the possibilities!’ I can’t help but ‘green’ magazine made from clear-cut editor, Backpacker wonder why Vanity Fair hasn’t been bold forests,” Todd Paglia, executive direcenough to take on its own contributions tor of ForestEthics, a non-profit organization based in San Francisco, wrote in a blog post entitled to deforestation and climate change.” Paglia adds: “If they are furthering the idea that talk “No More Green Issues” earlier this year. Conde Nast declined interview requests for this report, without action is sufficient, they may have outlasted their citing a company privacy policy. usefulness.” He points out that other magazines like Shape, Mother It’s not just Vanity Fair that has drawn the ire of environmentalists. In April, the New York Times magazine published Jones, Ode and Plenty “have seen fit to make their values and its first-ever “green issue”—a “low-carbon catalog” of ideas the paper they use consistent.” for environmentally-conscious living boasting a slew of new advertisers. But, in what’s becoming increasingly irritating looKing Within to environmental bloggers and “green publishing” experts Both Backpacker and Discover took the idea of green introthat monitor them—it was not printed on recycled paper. spection a step further, using their “green” issues as an “That would be nice,” Gerald Marzorati, the magazine’s opportunity to take stock of their own companies [see the editor, told Folio: at the time. “Our printing is a very partic- results of Discover’s carbon audit, page 35]. Backpacker did ular method, and these machines use a very old, not terribly a full carbon footprint audit, during which the company good paper stock. It just wasn’t feasible.” Marzorati hoped measured consumption of everything from paper and ink the issue’s message—“micro-level” things individuals can to paper clips and pencils. Jonathan Dorn, editor-in-chief “airplane travel is devastating” b-to-b publishers look to Cash in with Green spin-offs aCCorDinG to a reCent report from McGraw-Hill Construction, the green home building market is expected to be worth as much as $20 billion this year, and could double over the next five years, possibly reaching as much as $70 billion in market share. Magazine publishers in the b-to-b space are also cashing in on this expanding market. McGraw-Hill’s award-winning, 42,000-circulation GreenSource magazine, for instance, has seen consistent advertising sales growth since its launch in 2006. Its March issue was its largest to-date, McGraw-Hill says, with more than 80 ad pages. Traffic to its Web site, greensourcemag.com, is up nearly 200 percent since July 2007. And this July, McGraw-Hill increased the magazine’s frequency from quarterly to bi-monthly. “We’re seeing a tidal wave of interest [in green building] from our readers and customers,” says Hanley Wood group publisher Rick Strachan. In January, the b-to-b housing and construction publisher launched Green Products and Technology, then relaunched the 35,000-circ. title as EcoHome, and increased the editorial budget by 25 percent per issue, Strachan says. “When the first issue came out earlier this year,” he says. “We knew it was good but knew also that this is too important a segment not to put more money into this magazine.” While Hanley Wood plans to keep EcoHome as a quarterly through the rest of 2008, it plans to up its frequency to bi-monthly in 2009. Strachan adds: “We’re building an eco-franchise.” n Folio: October 2008 | foliomag.com http://www.greensourcemag.com http://www.foliomag.com

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Folio Green Report What Does it Mean to be Green? Production Operations Editorial Distribution Events Marketing Digital One Publisher's Green Checklist

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