• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, June 30, 2011

Aspiring publishers have not been deterred by the weak magazine advertising market, judging by the latest figures from MediaFinder. com, which maintains an online database of U.S. and Canadian publications. The total number of new magazines launched in the first half of 2011 came to 138, up 53% from 90 in the first half of 2010.

The number of magazines that closed fell 15% from 87 in the first half of 2010 to 74 in the first half of 2011.

These positive findings included new magazine launches in a variety of categories, with the most new launches coming in the food and regional interest titles, including Gilt Taste and Plum Hamptons. In terms of magazine closings, regional titles again dominated because of shuttered pubs that belong to 944 Media.

The business-to-business category saw 34 new titles launch, including Progressive Cattleman and Converting Quarterly, while just 13 B2B titles ceased publication, including Industrial Wastewater and Texas Construction.

At the current pace, 2011 should see fewer magazine closings than 2010, when a total of 176 folded by the end of the year. The current pace of magazine closings is also well below previous years. In 2008, MediaFinder.com said a total of 525 magazines closed, and 428 folded in 2009. The pace of new launches has also varied significantly, with 335 new magazines launched in 2008, 275 in 2009, and 193 in 2010.

E-Reader, Tablet Owners Are Heavy Print Readers

While they may shift their media consumption to digital devices, consumers who own e-readers and tablet computers tend to be heavy readers of the printed versions of magazines and newspapers, according to GfK MRI. Overall, tablet owners are 66% more likely than the average U.S. adult to be heavy users of print magazines, while e-reader owners are 23% more likely. Interestingly, the proportions vary somewhat for newspapers: Tablet owners are 54% more likely to be heavy newspaper readers, but e-readers are 63% more likely. In terms of Internet use, tablet owners are 79% more likely to be heavy users, compared to 36% for e-reader owners.

Food Network Magazine Teams with DIY Network

One of the perennial demands of homeowners, if we are to believe real estate shows, is more and better kitchen space. To that end, for the second year in a row Food Network Magazine and the DIY Network are joining forces to remodel some worthy applicant's kitchen. To be considered for the culinary makeover, participants just need to upload an image or video to DIYNetwork.com and explain why their kitchen, in a word, sucks. The "winning" kitchen in the "Worst Kitchen in America" contest will get a full remodeling and update courtesy of the magazine and network.

Paste Resurrects Mag with Digital Edition

Music and art magazine Paste, which closed its print edition in September of last year but kept its Web site, is resurrecting the magazine with a digital edition (available through its mPlayer platform) offering musician profiles, music videos, and related video content. This includes new mp3 downloads and editorial features on a weekly basis. Paste president and co-founder Tim-Regan Porter was quoted in Folio: "We missed the idea of surprising and delighting our audience with the unexpected, to be able to put together a package of features that they can come across at home with their iPad, with time to spend and read; we really built it around that."

Newman Joins Reader's Digest as Creative Director

The personnel changes at the Reader's Digest Association are continuing with this week's announcement that Robert Newman has joined flagship Reader's Digest as creative director; previously he served as consulting creative director, beginning in December 2010. Before that, he served as design director for a wide variety of magazines, including Fortune, Real Simple, Entertainment Weekly and New York. He was also responsible for TV Guide's recent redesign.