The Demise of Jane Magazine

For every swear word or crack made about a celebrity that graced its pages, there seemed to be an outrageous contradiction in what Jane magazine stood for. Some called it the anti-women's magazine. It was supposed to be a publication with sass that oftentimes could be crass and downright dirty while still featuring edgy fashion and tips that ranged from clothing to hints on one's sex life. It was supposed to be the anti-magazine. Something different for the set who could never read through an entire issue of the all-too serious Vogue or have the heart to sift through a dated issue of Elle.

But then came the recent news that the magazine was folding. The last issue which featured Zooey Deschanel would signify the end after 10 years of giving the "counterculture" set something to sift through while waiting for our nails to dry or our hair to be cut.

And while some may say that they were shocked by the news, one has to think that the demise of Jane was inevitable. After all, the counterculture is defined as being against trendy fashions or caring about the image they projected to others. In many ways, Jane attempted to do both and contradicted itself 10 times over in the process much to some readers entertainment and groans among others.

The magazine tended to featured overpriced clothing, which didn't make sense in the lives of the so-called working girl just out of college and trying to make ends meet. What girl on a $30,000 salary could afford $1,000 bags with a rent, utilities and a car to worry about?

The magazine featured celebrities, which also didn't seem to make sense considering it was supposed to be the magazine for every-girl.

However, after 10 years one should look back and think that Jane did a good job at the balancing act of bringing in the mainstream by writing against it even though it was still giving attention to what was popular - if that makes any sense at all.

A lot of people say, the demise may have occurred when the magazine's founder, Jane Pratt left (some say was forced out) for a younger person to head the magazine (and who never quite captured the same voice as the original founder). Some say the magazine sold itself out with cheesey gimmicks towards the end (such as the contest to get one reader to finally lose her virginity - definitely in bad taste).

Despite whatever people may want to argue, the magazine was too mainstream to be counterculture like that of Bust or Bitch magazines, which are so niche-oriented one can figure that out just by their names alone and the later years of Jane's antics may have forced some of its readers to go to those magazines.

With Jane gone, one wonders what will come next. Certainly in the decade that it has existed, nothing has come close to being similar to it in content or voice. So, the question is whether Conde Nast made a mistake in silencing Jane. Only time will tell if another publisher will step up to reclaim the magazine's market share in the competitive world of publishing and fashion.