Battle For Women Readers

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31462, 31 August 1967, Page 2

Battle For Women Readers

(Reprinted from “Newsweek") The way many men see it, women’s maga-. sines should politely present their wives with recipes, budget tips and fashion notes. But this is not the way the men who run women’s magazines always see it.

"A magazine for women,” says Mr Robert stein, editor of “McCall’s,” “must be enlightening, stimulating, provoking and challenging about everything that interests women—from food right up to politics and religion.” To accomplish to reap rewards from the largest magazine market in the country (total circulation: more than 50 million) —the distaff monthlies have consistently provoked, stimulated and challenged one another as well.

“Good Housekeeping" (circulation: 5,5 million) protects

its reputation as the leading womens' service magazine with. such informative features as “What You can Be About Obscene Telephone Calls,” and "Redbook” <4.3 million) holds op to an audience of young mothers with such articles as "The New Sex Your child win Learn," “Woman’s Day" (8.5 million) and "Family Circle” (7 million) fight it out in the supermarkets.

But the biggest battle of the Amazons is betweeen “MeCall's'’ (circulation: 8.5 million) and “The Ladies’ Home Journal” (circulation: 6.8 million), which- have been slug, ging it out heavily sinee 1960 when “McCall’s” passed the “Journal” in circulation. Last week the battle line was drawn over advertising. The Publishers Information Bureau released statistics showing the “Journal” led “McCall’s” for the first six months of the year in lines to "McCall’S" 344,781, “McCall's" argued that is talking about the achievement its competitor failed tn

mentiop that ftp ‘'Journal” was offering ms, at big discaunt rates- "We offer dispouuts as da an magMtoas," save tthe editor of the "Journal," Mr John Mack Carter, "But there is no question about the "journal" coming from fifth place in linage to first.” Messrs stein anil Carter took over their posts two years age in an efiiteriai shift that intensified the cempetitian- Mr carter had been editor i of ’’McCall’s" and Mr Stem had been editor of its sister magazine, "Redboek,” also owned by the McCall Corporation, when they took over their new magazines both editors began clearing out weak features. And in spite of a residue of such articles—the upcoming "Journal” will include "Sophia Loren Talks About the Sorrow of Losing Her Baby” and “McCall’s” will run "Johnny Carson: Laugh Lines From His New tBook”-nMr Stein and Mr Carter have greatly improved the quality pf their magazines. The "Journal” has

published pieces by the humourists Art Buehwald, peg Bracken and Phyllis McGinley. The more sober "McCall’s” has featured the psychoanalyst Erich Fromm and the historians Arthur Schlesinger Jun. and Barbara Tuehman. In a provocative commentary on "The Missing Element—Moral Courage" in the "McCall’s June issue, Mrs Tuehman rebuked national leaders for running "Pied Piper" popularity contests instead of providing moral direction.

to addition to bidding for “name” writers, both “McCall’s” and the “Journal” are now pursuing the news with vjgour. Sometimes the chase leads to head-on collisions, The “Journal” last month ran a special report on “The Terrible Trouble With BlrthLontrol Pilis,” it reported that serious medical problems and even deaths resulted from oral contraceptives, “McCall's” editor, Mr Stein, claims the “Journal” put the story together hurriedly after it came upon a questionnaire he had sent out to 9000 members of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. “I saw the “McCall’s” questionnaire after I was already into that story,” says Mr Car. ter, “and I was amazed that they were doing the same thing.” “McCall’s” still plans to go ahead with its story on the pills in November. “And when we publish the results,” says Mr stein, “we won’t try to excite our readers and overblow or exaggerate the story.”

The emphasis on in-depth surveys can be expected to continue. The “Journal” plans a major one next year on infidelity in marriage, a research project that Mr Carter estimates will cost at toast 850.000, "It’s an expensive operation," he says, "but wnen we’re finished we’ll be talking about marriage today and not the statistics of the 19505" “McCall's” has also been at work on a number of surveys, including one scheduled for early next year in which the magazine will ask 3000 Protestant ministers such unsettling questions as whether churchmen should get involved in civil rights demonstrations.

“Competition is healthy as tong as your competition is chasing you in the right direction,” says Mr Stein. “It does get the blood up.”