• by John Gaffney , May 7, 2003

Rebel With A Cause: It would have been bad form for Dennis Publishing to meekly accept its banishment from Wal-Mart. The rebellious pose of Maxim and Stuff puts Dennis in the unique position of not needing the world's most morally sensitive retailer. But I absolutely love the fact that Dennis had the, you know, um, gall to strike out directly at the double standard Wal-Mart is setting here. They did so in a public statement yesterday that didn't do much to win any friends in Bentonville, AR, which is where Wal-Mart makes these decisions from. I'm sure Cosmo sells well at Wal-Mart. I'm sure the edition of GQ that had J. Lo barely clothed sold well. Wal-Mart has the right to stock what it wants. And this magazine company has certainly found a profitable business formula that it will not have to change just in order to win Wal-Mart back, or any other conservative retailer for that matter. This is a big deal because a powerful retailer flexed its muscles in a way that is always a bit scary when you realize the power Wal-Mart has amassed. From a planning and buying perspective Wal-Mart is not a big deal. And it won't mean the popularity of Maxim, FHM or any other laddie mags has abated.

Ray Of Light: CBS News president Andrew Heyward reportedly told the iMedia summit yesterday that the major TV networks -- including his own -- are now engaged in a struggle for "survival of the samest." He's not happy about that and his attitude might be the smartest thing about network news that I've heard since they moved everybody to 6:30. The main reason Fox is eating the networks lunch on news is because they're different. Heyward gets it. Now let's see what he can sell to the die hards at CBS HQ.

At The Buzzer: This from Gawker.com (website with big attitude) yesterday: "I'm not one to criticize Wal-Mart for being a massive soul-destroying retail chain, as I think there's something to be said for price efficiencies, but you have to love a store whose policy is "we won't sell laddie mags because god knows what sort of trouble those would start (think of the children!) but we have a special on Remington 500s-free ammo with every purchase!"