Shimp and DeLozier(1986,p.383)note that rereading and pass-alongs can greatly expand the range of a magazine's existence.Often they find service well past their dates of issue.Hair salons,dentist's offices,bathrooms,etc.are likely to display volumes well past the time that they are current.And the local library just may have a box-as the library in West Caldwell,NJ,does-that serves as a magazine exchange for patrons.Johnston(1979)discusses the traditional role of magazines as fonts of knowledge about culture.In that capacity,they both chronicle the cultural record and provide a storage cabinet:
Magazines are akin to books in that they are important tools in social research.Because of their in-depth reportage and diversity of information,magazines provide a historical catalog of American life.Because of their semipermanent physical nature,they are easily filed in libraries for reference.(p.100)
Connecting through Attachment
Hoarding and stockpiling of magazines is not only accomplished on an archival basis in libraries,but also in informal settings as well.“Unlike other media,magazines are often used for reference and are kept around the home for weeks or even longer”(Shimp and DeLozier,1986,p.383).In many instances,people simply find magazines difficult to get rid of.Therefore,they may tend to accumulate.
Of all magazines,the National Geographic is most renowned for its staying power.The personal attachment to this attractive periodical is legendary(Golden archive,1997)-so much so that President Ronald Reagan,in dedicating a new National Geographic Society building in 1984,“joked that even the Society seemed to have trouble with magazine storage.”
Books on household cleaning and clutter control even devote whole sections to this phenomenon(Culp,1989;Campbell,1992).Organization management consultant Stephanie Culp remarks:
Whenever I walk into a house,office,or garage resplendent with walls of yellow that virtually glow in the dark,I know that I should view the scene with something akin to religious fervor.Eventually the magazine fills up every available bookshelf and the proud owner starts to pack them in boxes-for what purpose,I have no idea.(p.106)
Culp's(1989,p.106)advice is to save time and money by recycling or simply throwing out the issues,but she concedes:“If you're the well-read owner of several shelves of that yellow glory,I know you won't pay attention to a thing I say.”
House cleaning expert Jeff Campbell asserts(1992):“As of September 1991 there were approximately 3.784 billion copies of National Geographic in print,and just about every one of them is still in somebody's garage.It is such a splendidly photographed thing of beauty that we feel like criminals when we try to throw one away.”(p.117)
Connecting through Collecting
In a formal sense,collectors also acquire magazines,for historical,curiosity,fan value.As such,magazines serve an interactive role of bringing people and events-and world views-of the past into clearer focus.Kapson(1979)notes,“The range of magazines that collectors seek is enormous.”
A check with Internet auction site,EBay,shows the thriving trade in back issues of magazines.The phenomenon even became a central theme on a Seinfeld episode,with George Costanza's father portrayed as an avid collector of back-issue TV Guides.Connecting through Alternative Use
While any given magazine is designed with a particular editorial mission and readership profile in mind,that may not be the context in which it will find its ultimate use.People often build bridges through interaction with magazines in alternative fashions that are familiar and everyday-but not intended or envisioned by the publisher.For example,discarded magazines,scissors and paste are staples of school art classes and home play times.A book for parents(Bennett&Bennett,1991)providing 365 alternatives to television-watching,calls for magazines as raw materials for numerous projects.And one especially imaginative book promises to impart all you need to know to make attractive envelopes from magazine illustrations(Harvey,1995).
Of course,this is not to suggest that a second-grader who cuts out a picture of Alan Greenspan from his father's issue of The Economist will automatically be conversant with the Federal Reserve policy.What is suggested is that in various ways,magazines have the capacity to continue to influence long after their dates of publication-even if the influence is disconnected from the original borders of the editorial content.Professional artists regularly employ magazine imagery in montages and collages.And some,including the likes of Vincent Van Gogh,have found inspiration in graphics from publications.As one source reports(Stolwijk&Smets,2003,p.44),“Van Gogh undoubtedly spent many hours cutting up magazines and arranging them in portfolios.”
Connections:Media-oriented
Besides dimensions of interaction with the dynamics of everyday life,magazines also have a profound power of integration with other media.In some instances,magazines are featured as subjects within mediated expressions;in other instances,magazines influence the shape and evolution of other media;and in still other instances,magazines combine with other forms of media to bring about new hybrids based on the concept of the magazine.Following is a consideration of dimensions of integration,including mediated appearance,concept,imitation,inspiration,association,and the Net.
