Do printed magazines and professional journalists have a future? Nick Brett thinks so – and as Group Editorial Director of BBC Magazines, he should know. Fiona Egglestone and Pete London met him in Falmouth to find out more.BBC Magazines are the third largest magazine publisher in the UK, currently with 50 titles, including most of the subject market leaders, including motoring (Top Gear), food (Good Food) and gardening (Gardeners' World). But how are they holding up in the current economic climate and in an online world where content is free?
Where we're at
Nick Brett is realistic. The next 18 months will be gloomy ones for the publishing industry, he admits. BBC Magazines currently have a job freeze and will have to reduce costs wherever possible – which means it will become increasingly difficult for freelancers to get commissioned.As potential freelancers we also need to understand the current media landscape. Over the last 10 or 11 years, since Tony Blair came to power, the speed of change in the media and in society has been phenomenal. We have seen the development of what Nick calls ‘nouveau riche’ brands, which have become household names: Amazon (1994), ipod (2001), Google (1998), ebay (1995), Flickr (2004). This has brought about phenomenal change.
All change
Where printed news was once king, electronic media has taken over. Events such as the Gulf War and the attack on the Twin Towers were televised live, and thanks to the internet, people have become used to getting their news almost instantaneously.Newspapers in particular have been forced to adapt to survive, reducing news content and becoming ‘magazinified', ie making increased use of features and glossy supplements. Newspapers have also had to develop a web presence. The Daily Telegraph, for example, uses ‘cross-rests’ and box-outs in the paper, which invite readers to go online and comment on issues raised or get further information.
At the same time, many leading TV programmes have moved away from a mere television presence. For example, Top Gear is now a multi-platform brand – TV / magazine / website / digital magazine. This trend is growing very quickly.
We're all journalists now
Now that blogging has become a way of life, everyone has become a journalist. So is there still a need for professionals? Nick Brett argues that there will always be a need for people with good skills – this never changes, he says. Cyperspace is full of half-finished websites and abandoned blogs – ‘dotsam and netsam' Nick calls them. Key skills that will help you to succeed where many others have tried and failed are:• Having great ideas
• Knowing how to tell a story
• Good writing
• Being obsessive about accuracy
• A sense of timing
• Understanding your reader.
But the two words that will probably help your career most are 'adaptable' and 'appropriate'. Magazines have to put the reader first, and editors and journalists have to provide what they want, in the way they want it. If you are able to understand your reader's changing needs and adapt your ideas and ways of working to reflect this, you're more likely to be in-demand.
A visual eye
Design, in its widest sense, is going to be at the heart of new journalism, states Nick Brett. Good editors work closely with art directors and must understand how an e-magazine will look on the web and how it will work on the page – the most successful people are simply able to ‘see’ the article on the page or on the web.As the audience has an ever increasing choice of media available to them, it's essential that editors are able to choose an appropriate medium. BBC Magazines are tailoring the medium to fit the audience. Good Food, for example, now has the largest collection of recipes online. Focus, the science and technology magazine, has developed a podcast offering bonus information not available elsewhere. Top Gear Magazine has become more integrated with the programme, which also helps to strengthen the brand.
BBC Music Magazine is currently trialling a digimag to find a more appropriate way of communicating with readers. It complements the printed magazine, and offers a way to show off what the magazine is all about, with the bonus that readers are able to listen to recommended reviews and buy CDs directly from HMV.
Brett believes that branding and strong content are key to the future of magazine publishing. Good magazines attract a loyal following, and online versions will complement, rather than replace, their printed counterparts.
Sound advice
Nick Brett has some excellent advice for would-be journalists trying to break into the magazine industry. Demonstrate the four Ps, he says, and you stand a much better chance of getting noticed and being commissioned:Passion – show a passion for magazines. One of the first questions he asks at interview is ‘Which magazines do you like?'
Preparation – spend a weekend preparing before an interview for a job in journalism. So much information is available online now, so Google the interviewer, and spend time critiquing some of their magazines.
Professionalism – make sure there are no typos, spelling or grammar errors in any job application or freelance story.
Persistence – try and try again!
