Magazine & Newspaper Management and Production

Preface

The print media are communication channels that disseminate
information through letters and pictures printed on paper using
mechanical or technological devices – printing machines. Books,
newspapers and magazines are three major print media categories
for communicating en mass. The dominance of newspapers and
magazines in the print media industry in Nigeria is not in doubt.
Today, newspapers and magazines of all types and with
aesthetically up-to-date layout and design are everywhere in the
country. The growing sophistication of the print media industry,
especially newspapers and magazines, calls for a text that explains
how this industry operates.
Magazine and Newspaper Management and Production
(third edition) is a text that explores and explains basic
techniques in newspaper and magazine publishing and looks at the
management and production aspects, providing details of prepress,
press and post-press activities. The book has nine chapters
each of which treats a unique topic with a fresh insight on the
newspaper and magazine business. This third edition provides an
update to some concepts and issues discussed in the first two editions.
The first chapter is an introductory excursion into the print
media industry, with specific emphasis on books, newspapers and
magazines. The origin, basic features and classification of these
three pillars of the print media industry were discussed.
The second chapter dwells on the meaning and basic
principles of management, including a brief on the need for
effective management in newspaper and magazine business. The
third chapter is a discussion on editorial policy, highlighting the
factors that shape editorial policy, features through which editorial
policies are expressed and basic functions of editorial policy.
The fourth chapter discusses newspaper and magazine
economics. It explains the strategies and mechanism of earning
profit from a newspaper or magazine business and the process of
budgeting available funds to keep business afloat. This includes
an introductory discourse on print media advertising.
The fifth chapter is on newspaper and magazine
management i.e. functional application of management
principles in operating a print medium. The sixth chapter dwells
on the production process, from the pre-press activities (editing
and proofreading) press activities (actual printing).
The seventh chapter looks at how Information and
Communication Technologies (ICTs) are impacting on the
newspaper and magazine business. This second edition also
looks at the fusion between the social media and magazine
management and production. The eight chapter discusses
aesthetics in newspapers and magazines while the ninth chapter
discusses the basic principles of page layout and design. The last
chapter (chapter ten) provides a simple guide on how to start a
newspaper or magazine. It presents the basic requirements for
this purpose and basic skills a prospective publisher should
possess.
This book is essential for students, practicing journalists
managerial staff in the print media, including journalism and
mass communication scholars who wish to keep in touch with
modern trends in print media management and production.