The weekly news magazines I read regularly are : The Week, The Economist, Businessworld and OutlookI have been subscribing for it since six years. Its strength lies in its able editorial team, headed by Editor-in-Chief Vinod Mehta. Its Managing Editor is Sandipan Deb, and Deputy Editor, Biswadep Mehta. The Operations Editor is Ajaj Ashraf, and the Assistant Editors, Ajith Pillai and Paromita Shastri. It has Senior Special Correspondents, Special Correspondents, Correspondents and a News Coordinator. It has a Copy Editor, supported by the Copy Desk Team. It has a team of excellent Photojournalists and Photographers. These people, by smoothly making all the systems to go, are able to produce a newsmagazine like Outlook.
I have before me the June 9 issue of Outlook. Its cover is very colourful, but to me, it looks rather confusing. The masthead has a red background, on which are printed: THE WEEKLY NEWSMAGAZINE Outlook . On the top right hand corner, there is a square size photograph of Musharaf and Bush, with the caption ’Musharraf Bush’s General’. On the top left hand panel it is written ’Dear Reader, A Fortune Awaits You Inside.’ The main body of the cover has the picture of a Restaurant with a top heading in all capitals ’Feeding Frenzy’, above which are printed in white ’ Restaurants are suddenly the safest, surest and most lucrative business in India’. In page 46, there is a story on Restaurants.
Its Contents Page lists the following sections: Current Affairs, International, Economy, Cover Story, Features and Regulars. There is also a small Box which mentions about a special judicial story.
Outlook formulates, from time to time, unique marketing policies, such as linking subscriptions to Gifts and other articles. Its Diary is a superb production. Blue, in colour, it has many interesting Data, and is good value for money. Its Vest Pocket Diary, also blue in colour, has similar Data, but presented in a condensed manner. Presently, it has designed ’Win-a-Fortune’, in page 12 of which there are the details of the Scratch the Fortune Card and Win 25, 000 instant Prizes. It gives clear instructions regarding ’How to win a fortune.’ I am collecting the Mega Cards in order to participate in the Mega Draw Prizes.
Outlook carefully selects the advertisements for its different pages. The entire magazine is printed in Art Paper.
Unlike The Week, which costs only Rs.10/- an issue, Outlook costs Rs.15/-. My subscriptions are always on a reduced rate linked to prizes and gifts. Even then I won’t bother to pay the additional Rs.5/- per issue.
You can subscribe for Outlook by Credit Card, like I do.
If you ask me how Outlook is priced at Rs.15/-, my answer would be that its advertising revenue is so huge that it absorbs the overheads and sells the magazine at the price determined by its Marketing Department. So, read Outlook from page to page. You will stand to gain from all sides.