Time Magazine

Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested. ~~ Sir Francis Bacon

Be as careful of the books you read, as of the company you keep; for your habits and character will be as much influenced by the former as by the latter. ~~Paxton Hood

~~~   ~~ ~INTRODUCTION ~~~   ~~ ~

Take a look at the quote from Sir Francis Bacon. How true it is, though he was not very aware of magazines that time? The same can be applied to the Time Magazine. It is definitely something worth looking forward to, every week. Something that gives you weekly dose of important things that happen around the world. Something that gives you a visual splendor via the breath taking pictures. Something in a true critical sense when it comes to unbiased opinions about certain critical issues. While it does take a stand on certain issues (Obviously due to the writer’s siding and bias) when they are published, it makes sure it doesn’t touch the fabric of dignity of most of its readers by not being overtly controversial. Time is an exceptional magazine and is the one of biggest weekly magazine subscribed in the world. The cult following the readers has for this magazine is a classic example. The honor and fame the “Time Person of the year” carries tells you volumes about the might of this magazine. Like tide, time never waits for anyone to give you the great weekly dose of intellectual writing.

As usual, we shall get into some history lesson. Shall we. (Am I making my history teacher proud?)

~~~   ~~ ~A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME ~~~   ~~ ~

Well, if you think I was gonna talk about Stephen Hawking’s master blster, “surely you must be joking Mr.Feynman”, Well, I thought of making pun using couple of my favorite books. Look forward for those reviews. Let us delve into the history, shall we?

Time started off in a small way with some 3700 odd issues in March 3, 1923 with an idea to chronicle history. It’s original motto was to shape the worldly opinion of the readers and for “enlivening the intellect of Time readers”. Now it is being printed in 400 locales with a readership of 30 million. It has a circulation of 4+ million in US and about 1.7 million worldwide. It is being managed by 13 “bossmen” or the “Managing Editor” who makes sure this magazine continues to captivate its readers.

~~~   ~~ ~PERSONAL MUSINGS OF A TIMED MAN ~~~   ~~ ~

Well, I was politically incorrect. Weren’t I? My fling with Time Magazine started around the same time I started my fling with National Geographic (read my review https://mouthshut.com/readreview/39607-1.html). I became a regular subscriber in 1997, when I got an offer I couldn’t refuse (Sorry Don Vito!!). I happened to browse CNN, which is part of the Time Warner Group and got 4 free issues for trial. Immediately after I read (remember, I was all aware about might of Time), I felt that I was glad to pay $30 dollars per year, which is peanuts compared to the wealth of knowledge and intellect you get. I have been a regular reader since then and have lever missed out reading a single (well few may be, as I never read an article, but got hold of them J) issue of Time so far.

Time is truly refreshing for a person with thirst to know every bit of trivia about everything. It is just a treasure for me. Obviously this will be different for different people. I have had a wonderful time so far and hope it continues.

Let us delve into features shall we?

~~~   ~~ ~WEEKLY FEATURES ~~~   ~~ ~

Cover Story

This is the best part of the magazine. Truly an exceptional feature which is well researched, well composed and organized. This makes you become a person well aware about a particular topic through the microscopic eye of a time reporter. An example is the “Matrix Reloaded” review of May 12th Issue named unlocking the matrix. All the Matrix novices will know what this is in 30 minutes by reading this article. This is how good and simplified these articles are. This makes the readers love this magazine much more.

Note Book

This is a diary like feature of a well known Times reporter and is well stocked in information. Something cherishing and informative to read about, this is something I always look forward to. You have exceptional quotes by people all over the world, half page reports, facts and figures and what not. This is a truly amazing feature of this magazine. No one does it better than Time.

World

This is my favorite part of the magazine. This is the first article I read about, all the times. Fairly concise and to the point, it explores worldly issues in an almost unbiased manner (I still think some reporters take a personal stance which the editors let go due to the might of the reporter and the freedom of expression!) You get to know what is happening Ougadougou to Kaoolinaat-Nunaat. You can know what happened in Gujarat to what happened in Buenos Aires. While they cover the topics of prime importance for that week, it is always refreshing to read some.

Nation

This is similar to the world category. It analyzes the happening of the nation where it is printed in a beautiful manner.

Other topics include

=>Business – A weekly dose of excellent business article(s)

=>Lifestyle – Tells you about technology, leisure and things to improvise your lifestyle. Health also forms a part

=>Sport – What else do you expect here?

=>Arts – Know about Movies, Books, Music etc

=>Your Time - Food, Health, Technology, Money and the last two pages which make it a treat to read, People & Essay . This is something I look forward to for my snippets and trivia.

~~~   ~~ ~BOTTOM LINE & CONCLUSION ~~~   ~~ ~

If you ask me if I am a “Times” aficionado, I would say “yes”. Without Times, my week is not complete. Like the “Raymonds” commercial, I feel a complete man only when I have read “Times” for the week. This has been the case, thanks to Internet, whenever I never had a chance to read the glossy print version.

Another thing to look and cherish is the Times Person of the Year. This is widely looked forward feature and they have never made a decision in the recent past except for 2001 for obvious reasons. The Yearbook Times publishes is also equally excellent. I happened to go to the Sep-11th memorial in the Smithsonian Museum and happened to see most of the coverage done by Times Reporters and Magazine.

They have covered everything that has happened in a grand scale. Would I recommend time? Yes of course. I were to give a gift to someone I like, I would buy him or her a yearly subscription of Time. That’s how I like it.

The Link is https://time.com

Thanks for reading this review, please chip in your comments if time permits

Kalil