The formula for print success, apparently: be a blog for people who don't read blogs.
The Week, despite inauspicious beginnings ("Is [owner] Felix Dennis Mad?" demanded The Wall Street Journal), is proving a winner. It's financially solid, and readers actually read it: They spend an average of 67 seconds on each page. By contrast, deadbeat Economist readers put in 30.
Forbes writes of the magazine's success:
The Week's overall revenue climbed from $20 million in 2004 to $48 million in 2008. It broke even this year and expects to be profitable next year. It's also become a cultural reference point; it has been brandished on-screen by Meet The Press' David Gregory and spotted in the hands of Drew Barrymore.
When a blog "avoid[s] the costly process of reporting and writing its own stories," it's shameful; when a magazine does, it's a miracle.