Commentary

Cruz Attack Ad A Boon To 'Bella'

It’s a sign of how weirdly dysfunctional the American political landscape has become when simply appearing on a magazine cover with the New York City skyline in the background is supposed to be damaging for a Republican hopeful – and simply appearing in a Republican attack ad boosts the fortunes of a small lifestyle magazine.

But that’s where we are nowadays, according to the New York Post, which reported that Bella, a little-known lifestyle title that launched in January 2011, has reaped a whirlwind of free publicity from a TV attack ad put out by GOP contender Ted Cruz.

The ad highlights Trump’s connections to Sodom on the Hudson with two magazine covers – one from Esquire, the other from Bella – showing the real estate magnate in his native environment.

“Look, skyscrapers! He is a homosexual communist pornographer!” seems to be the basic gist of the ad, which showed the March-April 2015 cover of Bella, bearing a headline proclaiming Trump “The King of New York.”

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Of course, in New York City those are all considered positive characteristics.

Bella’s founders are ecstatic about the media exposure, including the implied parity with Esquire and the apparent anti-endorsement by Ted Cruz. Because in the mirror image of Cruz’s attack on Trump, just being singled out for conservative disdain is a bragging point in a place that makes Fellini’s “Satyricon” look like “It’s A Wonderful Life.”

The NYP notes that the ad’s timing couldn’t be better, as the small magazine is building momentum. Founded with a $10,000 budget by wife-and-husband team Courtenay and Daniel Hall, who serve as editor-in-chief and publisher, Bella has turned a profit several years in a row.

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