Alongside the compulsory gifts of tea-bags, Cadbury’s dairy milk and packets of paracetamol, the one thing I always ask people to bring me when they visit from the UK is a generous supply of British magazines.
I’ve given up on glossy US mags. If I have to spend $5 or $6 on a big read then I actually want something to read – rather than a catalogue of adverts.
I had a wry smile at the letters page in a recent copy of Sainsbury’s magazine which had fallen into my hands. A reader had complained that she disliked the layout of the magazine because there were too many advertising features. Sainsbury’s Magazine is a monthly publication by a supermarket chain – of course it’s going to carry adverts – it’s sole aim is to promote its own products, but at least it doesn’t disguise itself as a journalistic enterprise.
This reader needs to try picking her way through a US magazine – it really is a case of spot the genuine article.
US mags fall into roughly the same categories as back in the UK; there’s the pure work of fiction – the gossip and chat mags (I can’t wait for the arrival of Kate Middleton’s twins); then there are the glossy fashion mags – the last one of these I bought had 36 pages of adverts before I’d even reached the Contents list; and then there are of course the magazines aimed at the more mature woman like me, which are sadly little more than a promotional vehicle for that all American favourite of mine, the pharmaceutical industry.
Do I have inexplicable aches and pains? Well yes occasionally something gives an uncomfortable twinge.
Do I struggle to fall asleep at night? Not usually - a couple of glasses of wine seems to do the trick.
Am I suffering from depression? Not until I picked up the magazine….
And so it goes on - pages and pages of the stuff. I've long suspected that the pharmaceutical industry actually runs America and flicking through one of these magazines just confirms my theory. It's no wonder a lot of Americans you meet are walking medical dictionaries - they are bombarded from dawn until dusk with subliminal messages reinforcing a perceived need for vitamin supplements, anti-aging and cosmetic procedures, as well as all manner of wonder drugs and cure-alls. It's enough a make even the most fittest and healthiest amongst us to feel totally inadequate and decidedly peaky!
Do I struggle to fall asleep at night? Not usually - a couple of glasses of wine seems to do the trick.
Am I suffering from depression? Not until I picked up the magazine….
And so it goes on - pages and pages of the stuff. I've long suspected that the pharmaceutical industry actually runs America and flicking through one of these magazines just confirms my theory. It's no wonder a lot of Americans you meet are walking medical dictionaries - they are bombarded from dawn until dusk with subliminal messages reinforcing a perceived need for vitamin supplements, anti-aging and cosmetic procedures, as well as all manner of wonder drugs and cure-alls. It's enough a make even the most fittest and healthiest amongst us to feel totally inadequate and decidedly peaky!
It’s not that American magazines don't carry genuine features and articles - they do, you just have to hunt them out. Cover stories and interviews never begin until at least half way through the magazine, and although there's always an eye catching headline and a glamorous photo shoot, when you turn the page to continue reading you discover the bulk of the story is actually 97 pages of glossy ads away, right at the very back of the magazine.
Sadly US magazines have succumbed to the same format as US TV – a few lightweight snippets of information that interrupt a great deal of commercial activity. Give me a nice cup of tea and a copy of Woman’s Own any day of the week.
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