Magazines vs. Blogs

By: Kaitlyn Shanks and Marissa Karp
M&M Tipsters

Magazines and Blogs. Magazines are semi-trustworthy sources that have been around for years, but blogs are great for immediate news that needs to be spread. Is this enough to start a feud though? Many fashion bloggers have been criticized by magazine editors for being bought, inexperienced, and unreliable. This may seem understandable as on the internet many people pretend to be someone they are not, but the most popular blogs are completely credible. Magazines have been saying bloggers are “bought,” but that is like the pot calling the kettle black. The way magazines make their money is usually by selling advertisements and then recommending the products whose producers have paid them. When bloggers do the same thing magazines do, including ads, they are criticized more than magazine writers.

As the writer of Business of Fashion, Imran Amed says “Second, for editors from the mainstream media to hold bloggers to a different standard than that to which they hold themselves, is hypocritical. As one fashion insider told me, more than ever, major fashion editors are putting advertisers front and centre in their fashion editorial, giving smaller independent brands a miss”

Now, it is understandable why the magazine industry is attacking. They have been at the top of the pyramid when it comes to fashion news for many years, but now bloggers can instantly post news instead of waiting for the next issue to publish.

Don Nelson, a local blogger, emailed “…I’m not familiar with the feud you mention.” This shows that this feud may have not have had much affect on local blogs and magazines, as most local blogs are too small to get the attention of major magazines.

In reality, blogs and magazines should not fight. As TheStyleRookie blogger said, “Blogs and magazines are good for different things; it's like comparing apples with oranges. Collaboration, not competition. Always!”
Kaitlyn Shanks is a 9th grader at Memorial High School in Houston, Texas.
Marissa Karp is a 9th grader at Savannah Country Day School in Savannah, Georgia.