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Or maybe the internet kicked off a generational shift in demand away from written content and towards lowest common denominator content like Barstool and whatev
by add-sub-mul-div 3y ago
Or maybe the internet kicked off a generational shift in demand away from written content and towards lowest common denominator content like Barstool and whatever is going on with gambling. Startup brands will always be able to skate fastest towards the puck. To the extent that the SI brand is associated with substantive content it's more of a liability now.
- roughly 3y agoGrantland did fine for a while until it was cancelled by ESPN and then reborn as The Ringer, which has done fine since then; as noted elsewhere, The Athletic has been doing fine as well. I’m not convinced that “Americans don’t read interesting writing anymore” is a theory for which there’s sufficient evidence, although I could be convinced that a series of short-sighted business types tanked a 50 year old publication because they believed that.
- add-sub-mul-div 3y agoThe point is that in the old world a print magazine became a household name for generations, now the same type of content is relegated to a few niche brands that will never have the same level of cultural relevance. SI may well have been mismanaged, but print journalism is dying across the board so what really could have been expected? It could have survived with better management, but only by becoming something stupid.