Magazine Renewal: Fortune vs. Playgirl

Two magazines (among others, I know) have had their revamped editions on the stands this season, and they couldn't be more different -- not just in content, which you'd expect, but in quality, ambition, and integrity.

First, Time, Inc., has released the redesigned Fortune magazine, an old legend in the magazine industry. The redesign is clean and smart. My personal preference would be for the previous iteration of Fortune's design (it had more of an executive look to it), but nonetheless the new design isn't bad. This is still a magazine of content and quality.

Second, there's the release of the new edition of Playgirl, the one featuring Levi Johnston, and it's a huge letdown. Let's be more clear: This is a waste of paper. Not because of the nudity; hey, I'm gay, so print all the naked guys you want. But Playgirl is almost nothing but nude layouts. People buy magazines to read something, so why not a few more actual words of text? This iteration of Playgirl is, simply and brutally, crap crap crap, and the people who put it out are clearly out of their league in the magazine world.

Two new/old magazines. Couldn't be more different.