If you want a 20-ways-to-attract-your-man-type feature to tout your
client's product, try Cosmo. While Jane lends an open ear to PR pitches,
it's not about to start telling readers what to do, says Eleanor
Trickett.
Life "really sucks sometimes," and Jane has a "terrible rash."
Jane Pratt's letter, the first page of editorial on the eponymous
publication, sets the tone of the magazine. "We're not going to tell you
how to lose 10 pounds or how to trap that man," says Jauretsi
Saizarbitoria, Jane's entertainment editor. Instead, it gives young,
cool girls a haven from the "pressure that you get from other female
books," she explains.
Indeed, you don't have to mind your manners when Jane's in the room -
nor do you need to check your lip gloss (it famously performs
"makeunders" rather than "makeovers"), brush your hair, or be
embarrassed if an unwrapped tampon falls out of your Lulu Guinness
purse.
"I could pitch my OB/GYN client to Jane, saying, 'Don't wear a thong -
you'll get a yeast infection,'" illustrates Anne Moratto, an account
exec at LA boutique firm Harris Shephard, which this month has a
client's acne medicine in the Road Test section. "You couldn't do that
with Cosmopolitan. No one comes between a Cosmo reader and her
thong."
Jane was launched four years ago as the little sister to W. The idea was
pitched by Pratt, the doyenne of Sassy magazine and the editor that
dared to put Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love on the cover of a teen
mag.
Circulation currently sits at 650,000 (with a reach of 2.5 million), but
a recent deal struck by Fairchild parent company Conde Nast will see it
sold in 70,000 new supermarkets at the beginning of next year, expanding
those figures significantly.
Jane's readership is from ages 18 to 29, with the median at a
surprisingly "old" 28. December's cover star, Rose McGowan, sums up the
type of image the publication courts. They can be up and coming, or
already there, but certainly not wannabes or never-will-bes. "We don't
want Jennifer Love Hewitt on the cover," clarifies Saizarbitoria. "We
want Angelina Jolie. Young, independent thinkers - cool girls.
Main-stream, but edgy."
As for the product-focused elements, the Dish section at the front,
edited by Stephanie Trong, is a smorgasbord of new movies, funky jewelry
companies, offbeat health and beauty tips, bite-sized chunks of current
affairs information, and a rundown of a few hotties and notties.
(Included in the section is the Q&A, which is the ideal spot for the
young celebrities at the "who?" end of the superstar spectrum.) Along
with Beauty Central, Fashion Blender, and Reviews, these are the richest
sections in terms of PR opportunities.
Perhaps the most prime real estate in the publication is Peepshow, on
the inside back page. December's issue features cover star Rose
McGowan's green, sparkly retainer. While many of the items are spotted
by eagle-eyed Jane staffers, the magazine is open to suggestions. "It
has to be celeb-driven, but also personal," Saizarbitoria adds.
While Jane doesn't compete for news, being a monthly, it's always
looking for exclusives. But this isn't necessarily the scoop on a new
movie or moisturizer: "We believe in hand-tailored contributions such as
Penelope Cruz, Liv Tyler, or Jason Schwartzman, all shooting photos
exclusively for Jane, or something like that," says Saizarbitoria. "Our
version of exclusivity is to bring you this VIP backstage pass into the
worlds of film, music, and pop culture that our competitors tend to
provide from info on press junkets."
The editorial team (90% of whom are in bands, incidentally) prefers an
11-7 day - especially as the majority of many staffers' calls are on LA
time. The e-mail pitch is preferred, however. "The ones that send us a
bullet-pointed list - the talent they're repping, what projects are
coming out, and the release date - well, I could just kiss them," sighs
Saizarbitoria.
While padding is built into a lot of deadlines, the magazine is closed
nearly two months before the publication time. The Jan/Feb double issue
closed at the beginning of November, and March wraps on December 12. The
last things to close are the film section and Peepshow. The Q&A goes to
press first.
The most extreme forward planning is in the themed issues - tentatively
June/July's entertainment poll, August's guy issue, and October's music
issue. The whole magazine - and especially the covers - are a moveable
feast. It has to be, in order to have the flexibility needed to stay
edgy.
CONTACT LIST
Jane
Address: 7 W. 34th St., NY, NY 10001
Tel/Fax: (212) 630-3900/630-3925
E-mail: firstname.lastname@
fairchildpub.com (apart from Jauretsi Saizarbitoria, which is just
Jauretsi@fairchildpub.com)
Web: www.janemag.com
Editor-in-chief: Jane Pratt
Entertainment editor: Jauretsi Saizarbitoria
Fashion director: Susan Cannon
Associate beauty editor: Erin Flaherty
Senior and associate music editor: Jeff Johnson
Senior associate editor (and Dish compiler): Stephanie Trong
