Rolling Revisions

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, Oct 1, 2002 by Michael Grossman

Byline: Michael Grossman

Rolling Stone Wenner Media Editor and Publisher: Jann S. Wenner

Managing Editor: Ed Needham

Art Director: Andy Cowles

Mission: To retain the magazine's philosophy, while injecting some color. To be the kind of magazine that people have time to read today.

COVER

The Rolling Stone "redesign" hit the stands with much fanfare. But with a new editor and a new art director already at the helm, the stylistic metamorphosis had actually been underway for months. Therefore, a more telling comparison isn't between subsequent issues, but between the most recent issue [9/19/02] and one from a year ago. RS coverline fonts change issue to issue, so it's hard to know what's next. But this issue's choice is noteable: a single blocky, blunt-edged sans has replaced a fussier approach: flourish-filled serif type, elegant rule treatments and a whisper-soft drop shadow.

TYPOGRAPHY/GRAPHICS

An easy-reading new sans-serif is the star, boldly accenting almost every item. But the design smartly nods to RS's heritage, holding onto a few long-standing elements. The famed thick-and-thin Oxford rules that frame every edit page remain. No change in the logo. The text is tweaked for space efficiency, but readers could be forgiven for not noticing.

ACCESSIBILITY

Entry points abound. The use of type weight, tints, and a proliferation of postage-stamp images make even the most dutiful pages lad-mag lively, and yet compellingly useful. The key element of the redesign is found in the upper right-hand corner of the cover: "101 CDs reviewed and rated!" The magazine is running five times the reviews that it was a year ago.

SUMMARY

It's not your older sibling's Rolling Stone, but it works. Many are calling the design derivative of Blender, but Blender's design stole wholesale from the look AD Cowles perfected for his alma mater, Q, in the U.K. He knows what he's doing. Sure, the feature designs are a pale shadow of the ornate look that was RS's hallmark for over a decade under Fred Woodward and Gail Anderson. But those features - the soul of the old machine - have dwindled from 60 percent of the mag to more like 40 percent. The heart of this RS is the robust front and back of the book, playful, clear, useful and dancing to a fresher, faster beat.