Week Forty-Nine People Who Call Magazines ‘˜Books’!
It’s a funny old gig being a journalist. The simple facts are, that as we trade in words in rows, for money, the use of English and the simple qualities of what we call ‘˜literate’ matter like hell. The writing in The Independent that I looked at this morning when I went and had a naughty cooked breakfast at the De Vere hotel was way more sophisticated than that you find in The Sun at the caff.
And no, I don’t have a rude British breakfast every dayand I skip lunch when I do. Out of sheer guilt!
And the MEDIA, be it TV, radio, print magazines, internet or newspapers, ALL work exactly the same way. We sell adverts. (and also generally sell by cover price on paper, although the London Metro paper is a free-away.) The ads pay for all of it, including the writers/snappers. Yet there remains a difference between advert and editorial.
And it is this definition and delineation of material that makes the difference between righteous journalism, fit to enrich, educate, entertain and thus spark informed debate and a simple HEY BUY MY PRODUCT FOR MONEY! shout or the ‘He would (say that,) wouldn’t he?’ bit! (quote: Mandy Rice-Davies, 28th June 1963.)
One is supposed to have some damn value and a shred of moral stance, the other is ‘˜advertising’ and as we know, requires a regulator everywhere to keep it under some sort of sinful limit, while a Talk Audio banner is simply a plea to click and look at a website. But as the tin of ‘˜chicken’ bought in Spain that turned out to be chicken NECKS, despite the picture, advertising is largely distrusted unless you feel it is an accurate rendition of the product or service. Even given that an eminently positive spin is put on the message, we tend to want to accept the articles more than the adverts.
And there is a special place in journalistic hell for the ‘˜advertorial’. Or copy written as though is was opinion but skewed as positive-by-purchase. It pretends to be facts but is simply sales. UGH. (I’ve done my fair whore’s share but always felt dirty afterwards trade press!)
And the folks who think that is just fine, also tend not to be able to tell the difference anyway and have a total distrust of all journalism in any case. I had a boss like that once. Was roaring angry after a magazine bloke came to see him, carrying a posh burr walnut attaché case.
After he left, boss ranted about how that case had probably been empty and how pointless all that journalism was. And also tended to call a magazine, a book.
Which used to drive my mum spare. (She did both, thirty years as Woman’s Own’s Medical Editor, 92 book titles published.)
So, a HUGE, large and well deeply heartfelt thanks to the serious slew of Talk Audio Site Associates, who do run ad campaigns on the site. Knowing that while they can advertise, that the editorial remains independent. Merely happily steered to look at the items they like the most. The same as ever. when the mag wants to do a review, I call and ask and the company says, ‘We’re really proud of this new one, can we send you that?’ So it’s not an issue.
But what is the issue is the readership. What they see in editorial coverage and how the likes of my thoughts are taken. I review nakedly honestly and admit it when I foul-up (Most recently, check my comment stream under the Aston Martin DB9 video on Presenterbloke on the ‘˜tube I get taken to task.) and this in turn, can even ‘˜allow’ others with non-trendy opinions to admit it, if I happen to come out with a controversial one.
Like how six by nine speakers are bloody wondrous things that I utterly adore and always will. Chortle.. you can agree and admit it underneath, if you want to prove my point. Which ones did YOU once adore? Be HONEST now
So, good journalism can kill clique, destroy ‘˜rumour-based’ bad reputation and build real branding. And you lot, well you are the utter cognoscenti. Just for reading that last damn word, I salute you! So, oh MY do you matter! I will bet that EACH of you has a crew who call YOU if it is anything to do with car audio. Doncha?
Thus measuring the delicious yet horribly intangible reality of what ‘˜good and valuable’ editorial coverage actually adds up to is hard. But I’ll leave you with this.
On my entreaty, Orion audio to the tune of £65,000 retail got sent to be put in one car. It cost two years as a hermit to the fitter and destroyed his ten year relationship. So the ‘˜lucky’ bloke I saddled that vast responsibility onto (and it made him weep at times, he’ll admit) REALLY paid. Just not with money. And those who know, will recall how Orion and an Astra van with six fifteens, recreated the trend for mega-woofer installs in the UK.
Sold an AWFUL lot of Orion HCCA subwoofers but it took some time to fruit was all. Another distributor got the benefit. All that rant over, I will add that the same boss from forever ago tried TWICE to make a high end car audio distribution outfit work and kept on employing me! He gave me my first break in car audio in something suffocatingly exciting and I shall love him for ever!
Adam Rayner On Line Editor