The pressure of finding a job really gets to people. Yesterday, a friend of mine who is a December ’09 graduate from Northwestern University cracked. As a result, she sat down and wrote a sarcastic, satirical cover that she can only dream about sending to employers. She said it made her feel much better.
While she can’t actually send this in with her resume, it is a nice read if you want a few laughs. Even though this is only a joke, I blacked out her name and address for privacy’s sake.
It’s tough working in the print industry these days. It’s even harder you’re as invested in digital media as I am. But, for almost a year now, I’ve been a contributing designer for The Athens Blur Magazine, a free, 6 issue/year music and variety magazine based in Athens, GA. Being a thriving music community and home to such bands as REM, B52′s, and the Drive By Truckers, Athens seems to be the perfect market for a free music publication.
While on the surface, it may be. But the dire economic circumstances took a toil on the magazine, as it was fully funded from advertising revenue. And, several weeks ago, I received saddening news. The February 27th issue of Blur would be the last. This was just the 14th issue.
It is no shock that the print industry is facing problems, but it is harder to swallow when you’re involved with the publication. Even though I’ve been taught to not dwell on such forms of old media, it was hard to watch as the issues of Blur got progressively smaller and smaller with each release.
Even still, I was always optimistic about Blur’s future. Publications with passionate, niche markets can generally garner enough support to survive. This past summer, Atlanta-based magazine Paste (founded by a Grady graduate, might I add) was facing a similar crisis, and asked its fans for help. The editors launched The Campaign to Save Paste, and the outpouring of fan donations has allowed Paste to remain in print, at least for now. There are still signs of life in music, film, and culture. (If you get that joke, you’re awesome.)
All I can say is that I did everything I could to make Blur more than just a print product. I built a WordPress powered website to host both the magazine’s monthly content as well as the increasingly popular “Athens Blur Blogazine.” The website became the medium for Blur to spread its appeal to more than just a local audience. On Christmas Eve 2009, AthensBlur.com received over 11,000 hits from across the country at the news of the death of local musician Vic Chesnutt.
Regardless, that chapter of my life now over. All I can is…it’s been fun. Best of luck to Alec, Stephen, and the rest of the staff.
