I just bought a $16 newspaper.
Well, actually I picked up 4 copies so I could give a few to family members for Christmas. (Don't panic - there's no risk of spoiling any holiday surprises because, despite my best efforts, my family doesn't read this blog)
Getting back to the discussion about extraordinarily expensive periodicals... I bought 4 copies of the San Francisco Panorama which, as I'm sure no one has ever heard of, is the 33rd issue of McSweeney's Quarterly Literary Journal.
A brief background:
- Dave Eggers is a former graphic designer turned novelist turned philanthropist turned screenwriter who founded McSweeney's in the late 90's. He wrote the screenplay for the recent Where the Wild Things Are movie and a bunch of cool books and magazines which I'm sure you've somehow never seen before.
Anyway, as the inevitable demise of print newspapers as we know them draws closer, Eggers has compiled an incredible list of authors and cartoonists to contribute to a one time special edition 320 page broad sheet newspaper called the San Francisco Panorama.
And it has everything in it; new stuff from Stephen King, Chip Kidd, Junot Diaz, Chris Ware and about 150 other writers and designers. In fact, our boy, and client, Jonah Lehrer even contributed a piece he wrote about the cognitive benefits of travel.
NASA's Space Weather Research Program illustrated and explained
The Panorama could be a glimpse into the future of print journalism where only those publications offering unique and extraordinary content can survive.
Or it might be one of the last epic literary compendiums to be printed on newsprint and distributed through local independent book stores.
A guide to the perfect bowl of ramen by Momofuku's David Chang
We'll have to wait and see. The good news is that the first run was released in the Bay Area last week and sold out immediately. But, as luck would have it, they're printing more as we speak and you can buy yourself a copy here.
