Magazine Industry

Answer the following questions:

What are your favourite magazines?

Who is a typical magazine headed by?

Guess the meaning of the following words:

Study the following words and expressions:

Read and translate the text using a dictionary if necessary:

A glance at the masthead (the page that lists the magazine's personnel) of a few magazines will show that although there are many variations, a typical magazine is generally headed by a publisher who oversees four main departments: (1) circulation, (2) advertising, (3) production, and (4) editorial.

The publisher sets the general policy for the publication. He or she is responsible for budgeting, maintaining a healthy advertising position, keeping circulation high, and making sure the magazine has a consistent editorial direction. Strictly speaking, the publisher directs both the business and the editorial side of the publication, but most publishers tend to pay more attention to the financial operations and generally let the editor-in-chief make decisions concerning the content of the publication.

The Circulation Department. This department, under the supervision of the circulation director, is responsible for getting new readers and keeping current readers satisfied. If the magazine is losing readers, the circulation director must find out why. If the publisher thinks the magazine can attract another 50,000 subscribers, the circulation director has to figure out a way to get them. On most magazines, the pressure-filled job of circulation director is an important cog in the magazine's machinery. Responsible to the circulation director are the heads of three divisions: (1) the subscription manager, who tries to increase the number of people on the magazine's subscription list; (2) the single-copy sales manager, who works with the national distributors, wholesalers, and retailers; and (3) the subscription-fulfillment director, whose division is in charge of making sure that the magazine gets to subscribers by taking care of address changes, renewals, new subscribers, complaints, and so forth.

The Advertising and SalesDivision. Under the supervision of an advertising director, the advertising and sales division is responsible for selling space in the magazine to potential advertisers. Also working in this department are the sales promotion manager, who is responsible for putting together new programs to enhance sales; the sales staff,

Which does the actual selling; and the research director, who studies the audience and compiles data of interest to advertisers.

The Production Department. The production department is concerned with actually printing and binding the publication. In charge of this department is the production manager who buys paper, handles contracts with printers, orders new typesetting and computer equipment, and makes frequent visits to printing plants to make sure production is going smoothly.

The Editorial Department. The editorial department handles the nonadvertising content of the magazine. The person, in charge may be called the executive editor, the editor-in-chief, or simply the editor. On most publications, the job of editor is primarily-one of administration, and much of the editor's time is spent in supervising the editorial staff, planning topics that might be used in. upcoming issues, informing the advertising department about plans, and taking part in various public relations activities. The day-to-day operation of the magazine falls on the shoulders of the managing editor. Making sure all articles are completed on time, selecting artwork, writing titles, changing layouts, and shortening stories are all functions performed by the managing editor. Helping the managing editor with these tasks are several editors who handle articles, fiction, or other departments that appear regularly within the magazine. Since the managing editor is usually more skilled in the verbal department than in the visual, an art director designs the magazine, selects typefaces for headlines, and supervises the display of photos and other illustrations.

The computer has had an impact on almost all of the departments at a typical magazine. In circulation, computers are used to maintain subscription lists, generate promotional mailing lists, and do accounting. In the advertising department, computerized data bases are used to generate data that are helpful to potential clients. Special computers have been developed for use in editorial work. Along with word processing, these devices have a split-screen feature that allows editors to make marginal comments or rewrite whole paragraphs without altering the original text. Computerized searches of photo files are also possible. Recent advances in computerized composition made it possible to automate typesetting and integrate art and photos into page makeup, thus eliminating manual paste-ups. In the production department, computers are used to track paper flow, maintain schedules, and monitor quality control.

Ex.1. Answer the following questions:

1. Which four main departments are overseen by a publisher?

2. What is a publisher responsible for?

3. Can you describe the work of the circulation department?

4. What is an advertising director in charge of?

5. Who else woks in the advertising department?

6. What is the production department concerned with?

7. What does the editorial department handle?

8. What are computers used for in all listed above departments?

Ex.2. Give Russian equivalents:

Ex.3. Give English equivalents:

Ex 4. Match the words with their definitions:

Ex. 5. Complete the table with the appropriate forms of the words given:

Ex.6. Insert the words and phrases into the sentences in their correct form:

1. A typical magazine is generally headed by a ___.

2. The publisher sets the general ___ for the publication.

3. Most publishers generally let the___ make decisions concerning the content of the publication.

4. The circulation department is responsible for getting new ___ and keeping current readers ___.

5. The circulation director is an important ___ in the magazine’s machinery.

6. Advertising and sales division is responsible for selling ___ in the magazine to potential advertisers.

Ex.7. Translate from Russian into English:

1. Издатель отвечает за соблюдение бюджета, поддержание здоровой рекламной позиции, сохранение высокого тиража и проведение последовательного редакторского курса.

2. Если издатель полагает, что журнал может привлечь ещё 50000 подписчиков, директор тиража должен найти способ заполучить их.

3. Менеджер по производству закупает бумагу, заключает контракты с печатниками, заказывает новые типографские шрифты и компьютерное оборудование, наносит частые визиты в типографии и содействует тому, что производство идёт гладко.

4. Человек, который отвечает за редакторский отдел, может называться исполнительным редактором, главным редактором или просто редактором.

5. Ежедневное руководство по выпуску журнала падает на плечи управляющего редактора.

6. Управляющий редактор обеспечивает своевременное завершение всех статей, выбирает иллюстрации, пишет заголовки, меняет компоновку, урезает статьи.