Newsweek: Laugher v. Laffer

The Liberal Laugher Curve

What?  Not raising enough revenue?  Raise taxes!

THIS was yesterday's hilarity that I didn't quite finish due to business at the liquor store.  Newsweek, The Washington Post's alter parallel ego, where  no semblance of  objectivity is required, and very little delivered, lost an estimated $20 million in 2008,  and is on target to lose even more this year.   Their solution:  Raise the cover price to $5.95.  I soiled my britches when I saw that, because the last time I bought a Newsweek it cost me 75¢.  Turns out that the recent price was $4.95, but still.  “ On Monday, Newsweek unveils the most dramatic overhaul in its history -- one that parent Washington Post Co. hopes will take it from a money-losing position in the weekly-news category to a money-making one in the thought-leader category. It was a plan that was hatched by Newsweek CEO Tom Ascheim and sold to Newsweek Editor -- and recent Pulitzer Prize winner -- Jon Meacham. You can't keep doing the same thing, given the economic realities," Meacham told Media Ink. Newsweek hopes to double the price subscribers pay to about 80 cents a copy. In addition to the lower circ, the mag's content will change, moving away from chasing breaking news stories. The new Newsweek will have four main sections. Scope will replace the old Periscope section, and The Take will feature all the magazine's columnists. Features will be long narratives, which Meacham is calling, "The First Draft of History," and photo essays. The Culture will cover TV, movies and books each week, but with fewer reviews. ” I dunno what went wrong.  Newsweek's gleeful "We are all socialists" cover is certainly mainstream.  And coverage like Newsweek Frets about Christian Influence on ‘Idol’ Voting  surely appeals to a broad base of readership.  One area where Newsweak did botch things is the number of times they had Obama on the cover.  Whatever the number, they were dwarfed by TIME's  13 Obama covers in just the past year.  That's a big ↓.  What does "mag's content will change," mean?  A serious attempt at journalistic integrity?   Excuse me. That caused one hell of a laugh-fart here while I typed it.  Knowing how these people think, NATION might should expect some serious competition for the influential communist niche, a real growth market.  Bets?