Special Constituency Magazines

General Observations

The judges in this category are not gushy types. But when idea&s, from the University of Toronto made its way around the table, we were all taken aback. And then we gushed: ‘simple and sophisticate,” “inviting,” “restrained and cosmopolitan,” “fresh.” You get the drift. Admittedly, the idea of idea&s is fairly simple: present the ideas and insights of one’s faculty in their own words within a provocative and elegant venue. That simple idea is very tough to pull off, through, and idea&s represents remarkable editorial coordination and artistic ingenuity. We all want to subscribe.

Concerning the look of idea&s, our art director judge added: “Wonderful confluence of high-caliber artwork, layout, and editorial that balance each other in a very symbiotic way. Very professional minimal-modern layout grid with nice pacing and flow between articles.”

We read a number of excellent publications that address their stated goals extremely well. But idea&s definitely influenced our critical perception and raised our judgmental bar. Although consensus was strong on the winners in general, debate was heated about which award each should get. (We’re talking about a group of judges here that would have dissed Vanity Fair (too heavy!!).) This was decision-making by simple majority and grudging concession. The only unanimous decision was the gold medalist, idea&s.

Still, we loved all the magazines to which we gave awards, as well as a number that didn’t rank. The best embraced journalistic integrity and recognized the difficulty of holding and moving a sophisticated and distracted audience.

Research Magazines (18A)

Silver Medals

Ohio University, Perspectives

• Great story selection and design. One judge particularly liked the “Africa” and “Bankruptcy Rx” pieces. Nice variety of typography, although it sometimes gets in the way. The new design was an excellent move.

University of Missouri-Columbia, Illumination 

• Clean and elegant. Stunning look, though writing not quite the match of the look. Many of the photos and illustrations are breathtaking.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Endeavors

• The magazine “connects.” There’s humanity about it.” Best writing of the group. The articles often had creative, interesting ledes followed by strong descriptive language. Design doesn’t quite equal editorial quality. Just a little dated. Some photos are weak.

Special Interest Magazines (18B)

Gold Medal

University of Toronto Faculty of Arts and Science, idea&s

Silver Medals

Harvard Medical School, Harvard Medical Alumni Bulletin

• The issue is wonderful. Not only is the concept clever, but the essays are consistently lively and insightful. The writing throughout this magazine is exceptional. We were also impressed with how they managed with two colors. Nice work. Excellent design of editorial lead-ins. The quality of imagery is slightly inconsistent, however. While many images are provocative and effective, others are a bit too stock-like. Still, a very professional and solid publication.

Stanford University Medical School, Stanford Medicine

• Very appealing. Great look. Writing is not quite as lively. The layout is professional with innovative graphics throughout. Nice typographical control. The structure is just slightly meandering, but this actually helps offset the also slightly repetitive two-column layout.

Bronze Medals

Brigham Young University, Clark Memorandum

• We liked the focus on issues and values and humanitarian concerns. Stood out as the best of the law magazines.

Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Public Health Magazine

• Although the writing was not quite as strong as some of the others, an earnest, engaging magazine. Excellent focus on issues. Tasteful and balanced imagery. Great Photos. Maybe a wider array of layout formats would help, since the magazine is so large.

University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pitt Med 

• We loved the cover. Fresh design. Good variety of stories. Well-written and sensitive. Good shot at bringing in “new media” and contemporary artwork for broader audience appeal. Though it doesn’t always fit – and sometimes competes with the layout.