http://www.thepunch.com.au/tags/magazines/ Politics, political opinion, world news, sports news and the latest news and views updated live, daily on The Punch - Australia's best conversation. en Copyright 2012 The Punch penberthyd@newsltd.com.au penberthyd@newsltd.com.au Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 Politics, opinion, world news, sports news, latest news, views, Barack Obama, Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard, Nathan Rees, Malcolm Turnbull, Peter Garrett, Barnaby Joyce, Australian, federal politics, opinion polls, election, The Punch, thepunch, punch ExpressionEngine 1.6.7 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 15 http://www.thepunch.com.au/images/punch-logo-rss.png http://www.thepunch.com.au/ 144 70 Politics, political opinion, world news, sports news and the latest news and views updated live, daily on The Punch - Australia's best conversation. Search The Punch keywords http://www.thepunch.com.au/search/ http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/if-you-really-want-to-help-the-sisters-keep-your-gear-on/ Next week New Idea will feature a half-naked George Calombaris on the cover. “I want to be a role model for all the short and stocky men out there,” he says. Meanwhile, Hugh Jackman reveals all on the cover of the Australian Women’s Weekly about how to stay fabulous in your 40s. “I’m doing it for all the insecure men out there,” he grunts between his 112th and 113th rep. “You too can look like this!” Of course, this is all happening in a parallel universe. Generally, men don’t feel the need to take off their clothes for the cover of a magazine. So why do some women? This wasn’t what the suffragettes had in mind when they fought for women’s emancipation all those years ago. Emmeline Pankhurst, speaking at the Women’s Franchise League in 1889 didn’t say: “One day, women will be able to remove their clothes in public and be judged on how hard they work out at the gym. What a glorious day that will be!” Let’s start with Deborah Hutton’s cover shot. piotrowskid@newsltd.com.au (Daniel Piotrowski) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/if-you-really-want-to-help-the-sisters-keep-your-gear-on/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/if-you-really-want-to-help-the-sisters-keep-your-gear-on/#item7505 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/real-women-dont-wear-white-silk-jumpsuits/ That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: piotrowskid@newsltd.com.au (Daniel Piotrowski) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/real-women-dont-wear-white-silk-jumpsuits/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/real-women-dont-wear-white-silk-jumpsuits/#item6906 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/how-to-raise-a-defiant-finger-to-fashion/ “No fat chicks” is not just a Homer Simpson-esque T-shirt slogan. It’s also the bottom line of the fashion industry. And when I use the word “bottom” here, I’m not referring to a voluptuously padded Venus of Willendorf derriere but one of those pointy Paris Hilton numbers that look like they could deliver a nasty needle-stick injury. Cast an eye over shots from the big 2011 couture shows and you’ll see scores of emaciated young women limping down the runways with flesh-less knees, stringy necks and rib cages that make ET the extraterrestrial look like a fatty boomsticks. These human coat hangers are held up as exemplars of feminine beauty yet are eerily reminiscent of Sidney Nolan’s infamous photos of dead-but-alive-looking cow and horse carcasses from drought-stricken Queensland during the 1950s. piotrowskid@newsltd.com.au (Daniel Piotrowski) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/how-to-raise-a-defiant-finger-to-fashion/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/how-to-raise-a-defiant-finger-to-fashion/#item6140 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Farewell-to-the-first-and-last-great-Aussie-mens-mag/ The drinks went down easy. A little too easy for a wet Monday night. Alpha magazine was no more, the pin pulled in an 11 am meeting with management, and past and present staff were out drowning their sorrows. Outside, the rain poured down, as though in commiseration. In its heyday, Alpha was the biggest-selling men’s magazine in Australian publishing history. Its demise says much about the current industry focus on electronic publishing. But it says more about how incredibly tough it is, and always has been, to sell magazines to men in Australia. Men’s magazines are a tough game. The toughest. While women across all demographic groups have an automatic reflex to purchase mags both quality and trashy, men have no such compulsion. It’s like our hormonal cycle, or lack of it compared to women. The impulse is just not there. piotrowskid@newsltd.com.au (Daniel Piotrowski) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Farewell-to-the-first-and-last-great-Aussie-mens-mag/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Farewell-to-the-first-and-last-great-Aussie-mens-mag/#item5808 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/gillard-and-abbott-get-a-digital-makeover/ Warning: this has nothing to do with politics. We thought we’d see how the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader would scrub up under a digital makeover of the kind you might find in a high-fashion glossy magazine. They have each had a bit of a facelift, lip and hairline enhancements and skin tone improvements from a professional image retoucher. Here’s Abbott’s dramatic transformation: Notice the ears got a little tuck? And here’s the Prime Minister: piotrowskid@newsltd.com.au (Daniel Piotrowski) Lightweight http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/gillard-and-abbott-get-a-digital-makeover/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/gillard-and-abbott-get-a-digital-makeover/#item3858 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/well-readhead-theres-nothing-new-under-the-sun/ The other day at dinner, my friends and I were discussing the Ten Commandments.  It’s party, party, party when you roll with my posse. My friend George claimed that God originally made Eleven Commandments, but that one of the tablets was smashed so only ten were left (the actual Bible story is that there were two lots of Commandments; Moses smashed the first batch in anger and then a second series were produced).  Whatever the facts, George’s story excited me enormously. “I’ve got a great idea for a movie!” I cried.  “The Eleventh Commandment!  What if it wasn’t really smashed and there was a race to find it, like secret treasure?” piotrowskid@newsltd.com.au (Daniel Piotrowski) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/well-readhead-theres-nothing-new-under-the-sun/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/well-readhead-theres-nothing-new-under-the-sun/#item3019 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/The-logical-end-of-fashion-naked-clothes-horses/ Talk about a grand marketing plan! Last weekend, Love magazine, run by former Pop! Magazine Editor (and fashion industry icon) Katie Grand, started releasing their Issue #3 covers. The nude shots of Lara Stone, Kristen McMenamy, Daria Werbowy and Jeneil Williams were let loose on the internet, and didn’t the bloggers have a field day. I blogged about it. I got emails from friends to blog about it. I saw it on at least three other websites all marvelling over how we were getting to see these girls practically in their birthday suits. Fashion blogging land was in an excitable hoo hah. Naked supermodel? You’ve got to be kidding me! I’ve never seen that before. piotrowskid@newsltd.com.au (Daniel Piotrowski) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/The-logical-end-of-fashion-naked-clothes-horses/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/The-logical-end-of-fashion-naked-clothes-horses/#item2303 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/dont-buy-into-mag-lands-body-image-spin/ UPDATE 2pm: Mia Freedman, the chair of the committee put together by Kate Ellis to look at body image in the media, has just responded to Jackie Frank’s comments in her own blog Mamamia.com.au. As Freedman points out, the government doesn’t chose cover models, editors do. Cue the Nobel peace prize for the editor of Marie Claire who has taken the decision to put a naked Jennifer Hawkins on this month’s cover, not to boost circulation, of course, but in the name of “positive body image.” How brave of Jackie Frank to take a genetically-blessed 26-year-old former Miss Universe and pay her to get her kit off to make us all feel better about ourselves. Her historic move even came accessorised with a free lecture for Youth Minister Kate Ellis, who Frank says hasn’t done enough to address the crisis of confidence in Australia’s girls and young women. Now Marie Claire can join the orgy of self-congratulation among Australia’s women’s mags which in the past couple of months have been bold enough to put Sarah Murdoch on the cover of Women’s Weekly without airbrushing her 3.5 wrinkles and encouraged Tiffany Wood to show off her curves in the buff in Maddison. piotrowskid@newsltd.com.au (Daniel Piotrowski) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/dont-buy-into-mag-lands-body-image-spin/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/dont-buy-into-mag-lands-body-image-spin/#item2090 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/well-readhead-how-and-why-i-use-twitter/ I recently gave an address at the Media 140 Conference in Sydney about the impact of social media on journalism.  I was invited to speak about the ethics and professionalism of the way I use twitter.  Today’s post is adapted from my remarks. My guiding principle is ‘If in doubt, leave it out’.  In other words, when it comes to what I put on twitter, I err on the side of caution - as I do with what I write or broadcast generally. piotrowskid@newsltd.com.au (Daniel Piotrowski) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/well-readhead-how-and-why-i-use-twitter/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/well-readhead-how-and-why-i-use-twitter/#item1765 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Well-readhead-don/ I regularly find myself chairing panels at writers’ festivals or in bookshops and I give a standard spiel at the beginning of every event. ‘We’ll have time for questions at the end,’ I say, ‘And let me emphasise that we want questions, not statements.  If you stand up and make a statement, I will cut you off and publicly humiliate you.’ It usually gets a laugh ... until they realise I’m completely serious. piotrowskid@newsltd.com.au (Daniel Piotrowski) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Well-readhead-don/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Well-readhead-don/#item1643 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:13 +0000 That’s it. I am done with fashion magazines. Officially. I am never buying one, or reading one … or even nonchalantly flicking through the pages of one in my dentist’s office again. Ever. Again. Since my teens I have bought women’s fashion magazines off and on. The frequency dropped off as I got older but I would still occasionally buy one on impulse, sucked in by the glossy pages, the surreal photo of that actress I like on the cover and the promise of a few hours of mindless engagement with fashion, celebrity and perhaps even a decent article or two.  However, every time, from the first page to the back cover, I would travel a well-worn path through the six stages of fashion magazine consumption: