The future of mags in a virtual world

[Keyword: onlinejournalism]. Here's a discussion piece from the OJR about magazines' future with some interesting opinions. As usual in my editorial role I'll pick out the best bit:

"Jay Rosen: People who hope that the fundamentals of journalism won't change tend to attach those hopes to statements about unchanging media forms, like, 'I've lived through the death of print three times already. Remember the paperless office?' Whereas those who are hoping for change in journalism tend to get 'attached' to platform change as a kind of dynamo. I have no firm sense of what will happen with print, paper and ink. But I do think this: The strength of print is still that is scaled to the human body and what 'works' for it, or doesn't. The body and its requirements do change, but far more slowly than technology --and journalism -- do.

"Nina Link: We know from the Northwestern Magazine Reader Experience Study that people talk about magazines with some of the following words: 'it's my personal time out'; 'I lose myself in the pleasure of reading it'; 'it stimulates my thinking about things'; and 'it makes me smarter.' The physical attributes of a magazine are very much part of the experience of reading a magazine -- the size, the portability, the quality of the graphics and the ease of use. I believe strongly in the future of the paper-based magazine. It's been with us for more than 260 years. Paper-based magazines are a timely and timeless medium."