On the cover of the Rolling Stone...

I sometimes feel like I'm the only person I know who reads magazines. Clearly this is not the case, because there are still stacks of them out there. But I get that feeling. A lot of people look online for their content, but I don't feel sated by it. I love getting a new magazine and taking my time reading through it. I read them in the bathroom, in bed, at the table, wherever. Online content, which I love and read constantly, just doesn't do it for me completely. Here's why:

- Online content is often poorly edited, minimally researched, and a 50/50 chance of being completely wrong. This offends me as an intelligent reader. I am not a stupid prole who believes everything they read unquestioningly. So, if you make a statement in an article, I expect to see evidence/quotes to back it up. Too often they are lacking in online content.

- Access to talent is severely limited in many online publications. Traditional news media outlets have traditional links with traditional agencies. Which means? The big stars talk to the print media. For several reasons. One, they've always done it; two, there is a trust and a history and a respect that goes with a printed publication; and three, there's some oversight. There's someone to sue if it hits the fan, poo-style. So if you want to hear from interesting and famous people, you're more likely to get it in a traditional media format.

- A lot of online writing lacks style and interest. It bores me. I am a voracious consumer of online content, and it bores me. This is why I like reading quality magazines. Because I am rarely (if ever) bored. I think the reason is this. Anyone can start a blog or a website, get a few hits, build a reputation, and find themselves running something that people link to. Nice work, congratulations. However it does not make them a good writer. Good writing is not valid currency on the internet. To get paid to write for a quality magazine, you have to show some skills. You have to provide something new, different, interesting. "FIRST" doesn't matter in quality writing. "Best" does. Magazines have writers who have learned a trade and built a reputation on that. Websites rarely do. And their content is boring because of it.

- If, by chance, a website gets an opportunity to interview a big star, quite often the results are anti-climactic. This is because the writer lacks interviewing skills, or knowledge of what their readers want - usually both.There is a difference between an interesting question and a question designed to get an interesting answer. No one wants to read about how smart the writer is. People want to read the subject's responses. Where online publications do stand up in this area is their often encyclopedic knowledge of their topics. For that they should be applauded (*applause*).

- I find a lot of the best online publications are those linked to a traditional media outlet. Guardian Unlimited, The Australian, NineMSN, NEWS.com.au, ABC Online, The SMH and The Age. Even my favourite magazines like FourFourTwo and XXL Worldwide have strong online sections; FourFourTwo's blog section is especially good.

With all that, said here are some of my favourite online only publications:
Cracked - constantly funny AND informative. A really good read it should definitely be one of the bookmarks you check every day.
Television Without Pity - strong content every day, on television shows you may love. It also includes interesting galleries and articles on general trends and ideas. Very funny too.
Slate - strong political and cultural analysis. However I've just discovered it's owned by The Washington Post, so I guess that disqualifies it from this list.
Pajiba - started as a film review website but now seems to review popular culture. I have to say the film reviews (fewer and further between now) are still the strongest part of the site. Although some small articles are good value.

And finally, here's an article from Slate about the death of music magazines.

I guess what I'm saying is: I like quality writing. And so far, I still get it consistently in magazines and newspapers, and have to go digging for it on the internet.