Review Of The Economist

REVIEW OF THE ECONOMIST By Maile Cannon October 10, 2008 Spoofy newspaper, the Onion, described the kind of person who reads The Economist in its April 7, 2002, “Point/Counterpoint” column. It went something like this: Point: “I read in the Economist that...” Counterpoint: “Eeeeeuuuuuuuwwwww! The Economist says! The Economist says! I read The Economist! Aren't I cool? On weekends, I like to sit out on my porch in my wicker chair with my bifocals and my subscription copy of The Economist. Then, when I go to a professor's wine-and-cheese party later that night, I can casually mention all the fancy stuff I read about NASA and Venezuela and Gen. Pervez Musharraf in my fancy magazine and impress everybody. Touché. But regardless of how silly, the comment is stingingly accurate. According to the publication, the average annual income of an Economist reader is $175,000. Almost half its readers are senior management, and two out of five are company directors or higher. Eighty-five percent of its distribution comes from subscriptions and the average subscriber remains loyal for more than eight years. More than 90 percent of readers say they read the weekly edition at home—they did not mention a preference for wicker— and more than half read it as soon as they get it, which is usually Friday. Economist readers also enjoy the finer things in life: 70 percent say they talk about restaurants and wine with their friends, and at least 40 percent “believe they can convince others of their opinions about these topics.” It seems likely indeed that the people who read The Economist do enjoy a nice, moldy Bleu d'Auvergne with nip of Côtes du Rhône. The only stereotype neglected in The Onion is the gender of the typical Economist reader—it is usually a he. Worldwide, 87 percent of readers are male. Everything about the publication has been tailored to this high-flying demographic, including the advertising. DHL beckons managers to use their corporate services. Air China entices business class passengers with seats that fold out into something almost resembling a bed. Landrover seduces gentlemen adventurers with the “soft, supple skin” of all leather interiors. The jobs listings are notable, also. The World Bank is looking for a lead economist. The United Nations is hiring for a mission in Sudan. Cambridge University needs an economics lecturer.

The magazine is 8 in. x 10 in. and each copy runs about 100 thin pages. It fits neatly between a stack of files, or tucks nicely into the slim pocket of a briefcase or lap-top carrier. It can also be folded in half or rolled, and stuffed under an arm, without compromising its integrity. More than 1.3 million people throughout the world subscribe to The Economist, making a readership of 4 million, and all these people know this: The Economist is probably the best single resource in the world for international news (though there is plenty in it about money and finance). The publication, which actually calls itself a newspaper, though it is in every way a magazine, was started by a politically-minded Scottish hatmaker in 1843. From there it developed, faithfully sticking to its core mission of touting the virtures of free trade and internationalism. Articles in The Economist are not bylined, affording anonymity to writers who might need it (such as elected officials in the know) and giving the editor more power to shape each edition's overall structure. The Economist crams every one of its pages not dedicated to advertising (there is never advertising and content on the same page) with three columns of text, broken up only occasionally with small color photographs (always with witty, snarky captions), charts or graphs, or the odd De Chirico-inspired illustration. Long pieces are always continued onto the following page—no jumping to the back—and busy readers can judge the length of the piece by a little red square that marks each article's end. The magazine is cleanly written in plain English. Articles go into great detail and provide readers with thorough coverage of international politics, corporate business and emerging markets, and they explain how events taking place in one realm will affect operations in another. For example, The Economist is now playing close attention to the American elections, hypothesizing how either candidate elected might influence the global economy, international relations and future environmental concerns. The Economist is making money in a time when the newspaper and magazine industries are fiscally hemorrhaging. But it knows what it's doing. It knows its readers, how to sell to them, and how to give these demanding, time-strapped, cheese-munching types the good news they want.