The blurring line between advertising and editorial

There. Someone finally went and said it - in a job posting no less. Frontier Airlines' in-flight magazine publishers, Mphasis Integrated, is looking for a Managing Editor via Craigslist. Even with my current career track I gave it a read through to see what was what. It is not a bad job, except for what will probably become, for me, a classic line:

"You should be very much ‘new school’ and supportive of the blurring lines between editorial and advertising (we are not a news magazine, we are an entertainment magazine)"

(Oh and for the purposes of posterity I have copied the entire job ad at the end of this post.)

New school? Blurring lines between editorial and advertising? Is this for real? Okay, let's pick it apart:

This is a manifestation of many things that editors and i have discussed over the years: whether to write the whole truth and nothing but the truth (something for which Steve Wolfe is well-known) or whether to hold back in the fear of distressing a valuable advertiser. And this is an issue that often comes up on this blog.

The established separation of 'church' (editorial) and 'state' (advertising) is a part of journalistic ethics, and although editors do sometimes get forced to be a little nicer than they would like in editorial, they still strive towards the ideal of complete editorial independence. Why? Because any editor worth his salt knows that readers are a) brighter than he/she and b) can spot 'advertorial' work from a mile away.

Yet it looks like Frontier's Inflight magazine is willfully ignoring those little details and asking the Managing Editor to make sure that advertorial looks like editorial, and corresponds to the amount of money changing hands. In journalistic terms this is considered selling one's soul to the devil.

More: One of my colleagues immediately found the term 'new school' to be ageist. Okay, he has about a decade more than I and is more sensitive to things regarding age, but it is an interesting slant - his take is that the assumption being made by the publisher is that 'old editors' are too ethical to be able to handle the 'blurring lines' and therefore they only want young editors (i.e. New School). By that same assumption, he says they will favor a young editor who is less experienced, has had less time to think about the issues regarding editorial integrity and has less hang ups about publishing assumption in the guise of fact.

Now, with this all in mind, and do note that as a Denver-ite Frontier Airlines is My Airline of Choice, it is now clear to me why I never get past the first page of this airline's in-flight magazine, and why I am never tempted to take it home with me. That's because it is crap. It is a beautifully designed piece of crap, but nonetheless, crap. Taking away editorial integrity in the name of money is a short-term solution, whether it is a print or online publication. People see through it instantly. And quit reading and believing. Can they get away with it since it is a corporate/in flight publication? Sure, to a degree, just the way many in-flight magazines have done over the years. But I have always seen Frontier Airlines as being a little different from the rest (great branding on their part), and so I think they should simply quit publishing it at all, and focus instead on some great video on their 'wildblueyonder' video channel on their planes. Now that would make sense to me!

****

The Job posting itself:
2008-05-08

Mphasis Integrated, publisher of Frontier Airlines’ in-flight magazine, W!ld Blue Yonder is looking for a managing editor to work in its Denver, Colorado office. Currently W!LD Blue Yonder is a bimonthly magazine reaching over 1,000,000 readers per month, and our plan is to go monthly effective January 2009.

Working with a small, committed staff, the managing editor is responsible for the editorial content, planning, design, and production of the magazine, and for collaborating on the editorial development of the website (GOwildblueyonder.com). The managing editor’s responsibilities will include some writing (esp. advertorial and branded entertainment pieces); building and overseeing a network of exciting, connected writers; managing fact-checking / proofing processes; and working closely with the entire publishing team (sales, promotions, design, client) to deliver a top-notch, national caliber magazine.

You should be very much ‘new school’ and supportive of the blurring lines between editorial and advertising (we are not a news magazine, we are an entertainment magazine). We are committed to delivering content that both connects with our affluent, well-read audience AND delivers impactful support for the categories of our branded entertainment sponsors, predominantly in travel, but also in living (real estate, shelter, health); business and technology; and entertainment (music, reading, puzzles, fun).

Requirements:
Five years of progressive editorial and management experience; demonstrated writing and editing skills (esp. AP style); a B.A. or the equivalent; an established network of writer resources; experience in the in-flight or travel category preferred.

Comments

[ralphg]

With airlines looking to cut fuel costs, dropping the in-flight magazine would help greatly -- paper is heavy!

[Matt Lombard]

!! Where were you when I was getting blasted for suggesting that you can't really editorialize on a blog if you're pasted with advertising!

"New School"??!~?!? They have just reached to a new low of editorial ethics, and then stoop a little lower to try to give it legitimacy by calling it new school.

This topic raises a lot of dandre even among those who are not marketing types.

Thanks for posting this.

[Steve Wolfe]

I appreciate Rachael’s characterizing me as someone who writes “the whole truth and nothing but the truth.” For much of my career both as an engineer and as a newsletter publisher, I have tried to do this. When I have failed to write the whole truth, it was generally out of ignorance rather than an attempt to cover up something that clients or advertisers didn’t want to hear.

These days when I write, I do find myself pulling my punches. The whole truth can be discomforting. Most people – and not just advertisers -- don’t want to hear it. Clients who pay good money for help with their PLM-planning and product-development processes don’t like to hear that their existing methods are inefficient or that their current project schedules and budgets are unrealistic. Software companies don’t want to read about why customers think their products are not useful, are hard to use or install, or crash too much. Tell clients the whole truth and they may not want you back.

I can’t fault people for these attitudes. When I hear the whole truth about myself (usually from my wife), it disturbs me too.

So the market for the whole truth is thin. I’m not sure that most newspapers and magazines were interested in publishing the whole truth even in their post-World-War-II heyday from the 1940s to the 1990s. Except for wealthy big-city papers and national TV networks, most local media don’t want to offend wealthy commercial interests who are their advertisers. How much investigative journalism is there on the average one-and-a-half hour local TV news cast? Today with a majority of big media on the financial ropes, the pressure to not offend commercial interests and to work cooperatively on “advertorial” is increasing.

So I’m not sure I would characterize “W!ld Blue Yonder’s” “blurring lines between editorial and advertising” as “new school.” It sounds very old school to me.

Where one does find honest commentary these days is on Internet shopping sites, news groups, and forums. When people buy a product that doesn’t work for them, they write about its shortcomings without worrying about hurt feelings. And when product reviewers get facts wrong, others comment to correct them. The Internet is redefining journalism as something like citizenship. It involves everybody. This new egalitarian form of journalism isn’t necessarily less capable of bringing truth to light than the “old school” exemplified by trade magazines.

[KennethWong]

Blurring the line between editorial and advertorial is, in my view, neither old school nor new school. If anything, it's the attitude of someone unschooled in editorial ethics.

[marketing mix]

very informative keep on writing

[VectorJess]

It's ok, methinks, to have a new business model for publishing a print magazine. A model that includes product placement, advertorials, etc. The way to go about it to be direct and transparent. A sweet opening letter from the editor, saying something along the lines of, "Hi, we're happy to showcase some wonderful products made by the advertisers in our magazine ... etc. hope you enjoy it ... etc."

Honesty makes many things possible.

I can't speak to how the Frontier folks handle this subject, as I haven't seen their pub. But if people are just upfront, then much more is possible.

[heath]

check it: www.lonelyengineer.com

[Jeff Paul Internet Business]

I just want to ask that how much investigative journalism is there on the average one-and-a-half hour local TV news cast?

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