An Overview Of New York Magazine
Is it the right publication for you?
Welcome to my first post exploring New York Magazine. I am a big fan of this publication and hope my writing helps others better understand the site and maybe encourages them to check it out. NY Mag. covers a variety of topics and incorporates many different multimedia elements into its reporting. It keeps me entertained and informed. And who knows? Maybe it’ll end up becoming your new favorite site.
New York Magazine is divided into six sub-publications, each with their own focus: The Intelligencer, The Cut, Vulture, The Strategist, Curbed and Grub Street. When you first enter the site, these six sub-publications are listed in a banner right above the NY Mag. logo. Under this are the most popular stories from across all the sub-publications. The headlines are bold and eye-catching, with a photo accompanying each article encouraging viewers to click. There is a topic tag listed by the headline of each piece, so readers know what they’re getting into. The top articles listed are the ones that relate to the day’s breaking news. As you scroll down the website, more popular stories are advertised, but these pieces are less topical. New York Magazine also has a magazine publication. Lower down on the site’s homepage is an overview of what stories were featured in the latest print edition. Included are links to the articles for those who aren’t a magazine subscriber.
New York Magazine gets an A+ for engagement. The site has plenty of images, which attracts the readers’ eyes. Besides highlighting the most popular articles published, the site also has a sidebar on the right of the screen with each sub-publication’s latest posts along with the time or date they were published. I believe this is a smart addition because it allows quick tracking of the entire publication without having to leave the home page. Accessibility is key because viewers like to do less work. The sidebar encourages readers to visit more articles because the links are so readily available.
New York Magazine has something for everyone. The Intelligencer focuses on politics. The Cut writes about style and culture. Vulture covers all things music, film and TV. Shopaholics should visit The Strategist for the latest deals. Anyone looking for new real estate? Or interior design inspiration? Curbed has everything you need. Last, and maybe my favorite, Grub Street. It gives out all the latest and greatest food recommendations. If that’s not enough, the site also has daily horoscopes by “Madame Clairevoyant” and crossword puzzles. One could spend hours exploring the site because there is so much different content. I’m guilty of this.
One of the biggest appeals to New York Magazine for me is its incorporation of different multimedia elements. But the site could do a better job at advertising all that it offers. If one were to just look at the home page, the viewer wouldn’t know that NY Mag. also produces podcasts and videos. Only through further exploration and the clicking of the menu button, which you can’t guarantee every reader will do, would one discover this information. NY Mag. should promote their additional content and make it easily accessible, like it does for other elements on its site.
This is just my first overview of New York Magazine, but throughout the next few weeks I will delve deeper. I’ll explore each of NY Mag.’s sub-publications, its social media presence, how it covers breaking news and its use of multimedia. By the end of my series, you’ll know whether you want to dish out the extra money and subscribe to New York Magazine.