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The Melting Blog
Where Marketing Meets Culture
"What's A Blog?"
Thursday,
December 11, 2003
Yolk
Magazine, R.I.P.
Asian
America's answer to "laddie mags" like FHM and Maxim
--- Yolk Magazine
--- is folding after a decade-long run. The lede from the Los
Angeles Times (subscription required, it's free):
The scantily clad women were
supposed to save the magazine, but in the end, even they couldn't
do it.
Yolk, a pop culture magazine
for Asian Americans, has folded after 10 years of scrambling
to stay alive. The editors tried everything during the magazine's
31-issue run. They tried humorous articles and serious pieces.
And finally, hearing the death rattle, they tried sex, adopting
the photo-laden formula of racy men's magazines such as Maxim
and FHM.
But the periodical never turned
a profit, and now the Alhambra-based Yolk is the latest in
a line of Asian American publications to fold. Like others
before it, the magazine, which reached a circulation high
of 50,000 in 2000, had trouble convincing advertisers about
the worth of its readers: English-fluent, college-educated
Asian Americans coming from vastly different cultures.
Ever
since coming out of college, I would occasionally pick up Yolk
for the, um, articles. However, there was never much compelling
content in the magazine itself -- visual
accoutrements aside -- to sustain my interest and keep me
as a regular reader.
Nevertheless,
I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, there is a
huge dearth of print media targeting second- and third-generation
Asian Americans -- a bonafide consumer goldmine if there ever
was one: high education, high professional employment, and discretionary
income to boot. As a marketer, I would be salivating. On the other
hand, I've been around long enough to see publishers churn out
some really mediocre-to-awful "Asian American" product
-- bad writing, shoddy production, you name it. Too often, these
titles exist for no other reason than to be a conduit for Asian
celebrity spotting. I mean, how many articles can one read about
Lucy Liu or Yao Ming?
Now,
I recognize it's a real challenge to come up with a really good
print vehicle -- esp. one with enough general appeal to strike
that ever-so-delicate balance of reaching a pan-"Asian American"
demographic. The right mix just hasn't been discovered yet. The
ones that seem to be succeeding in targeting Asian youth tend
to be niche-driven and hobby-oriented. And they aren't necessarily
ethnic-specific either --- import cars, anime/manga, and trade
titles come to mind.
In
any case, Yolk will be reincarnating itself online where it seeks
life after print. Chop
Block is the new moniker.
More
thoughts on this later.
Posted by Thomas Tseng,
6:33 pm
Correction
and "Hispanic vs. Latino"
I
mentioned on Tuesday there was a collection of Hispanic/Latino-themed
blogs that were run by the same person. However, Latino
Pundit has emailed me to let know that he is not the same
individual who posts on Hispanic
Blog, Hispanic
Market Blog, Latino
Blog, and Latino
Forum Blog. My
bad. Thanks for the correction Latino
Pundit.
For
those who haven't read his site, check out his take today on the
debate between ethnic labels: "Hispanic" vs. "Latino".
"Personally,
I feel we must elevate above these titles (Hispanic/Latino)
and concentrate on real issues. You don't see Irish, Itialian,
or any other race mak(ing) a big deal on what they are called.
Maybe because they are satisfied with their titles and are
(do) not (feel) subjucated.
But,
my point is they are not and that frees them to give their
energies and passions to more important matters like careers,
employment, school and education and family. They are not
worried about racism and other "isms." We should
not be either and get our asses into politics and mainstream
current events (careers, science and technology, and families)."
Incidentally,
this issue was the subject of a Hispanic
Business Magazine article yesterday:
A
survey conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center and the Kaiser
Family Foundation in late spring 2002 of almost 3,000 adults
who identified themselves as Latinos or Hispanics found that
they tend to refer to themselves first by the Latin American
country where they or their parents were born.
When
asked if they had a preference of "Hispanic" or
"Latino," 53 percent of those polled said "no."
Of
the ones who had a preference, 34 percent chose "Hispanic,"
while 13 percent picked "Latino." But even within
that group, the preferences varied by where people lived.
Texans and people in the South tended to prefer "Hispanic."
"Latino" was the term of choice for Californians
and people in the Northeast.
The
debate ensues.
Posted by Thomas Tseng,
12:31 pm
Tuesday,
December 9, 2003
Nielsen's
Hispanic TV Index Adds English-Language Programming
From
this
week's HMW (subscription required):
Nielsen has added the top
five English-language programs among Hispanics to its weekly
report of the top 20 Spanish-language programs. For practically
every week, the top 20 Spanish-language programs are seen
on the Univision network. Last week's English-language programs
included two Fox programs, Simpsons (ranked 27) and Bernie
Mac (31); and one each from NBC, Fear factor (28), from ABC,
NFL Monday (33), and from CBS. CSI: Miami (38).
Karen
Gyimesi, Nielsen's vice president of marketing communications,
says reporters using the weekly listings had requested the
inclusion of English-language programs to better gauge Hispanic
preferences independently of language factors.
The
inclusion of The Simpson's isn't that big a surprise for those
who have followed the TV viewing habits of Latino youth. In fact,
last
year's Cultural Access Group study (spearheaded by my colleague
David Morse, who departed as President of CAG earlier this year)
revealed that the long-running animated show (now celebrating
its 13th season) ranked #1 for English-language programming watched
among the 14-24 age Hispanic segment.
Posted by Thomas Tseng,
1:32 am
The
Ethnic Blogosphere
At
some point I am going to get my act together and put up a comprehensive
blogroll of relevant links befitting this site's theme (as any
good blog should have). Currently, there are few sites in the
blogosphere that delve specifically into the subject of ethnic
marketing. After all, blogging is still a fairly new medium --
albeit one that's been a boon for media and political junkies
-- and it may take some time to find its audience. However, if
anyone out there knows of any good blog sites dedicated to culturally
targeted marketing, ethnic research, or diversity consulting,
email me.
In
the meantime, I've accidentally stumbled onto a collection of
noteworthy "Hispanic" blogs: Hispanic
Blog, Hispanic
Market Blog, Latino
Blog, Latino
Forum Blog, and Latino
Pundit. They all happen to be run by the same guy (who is
far more prolific than I am in posting news items --- I mean,
hell, he's got five of 'em!). While each site has some differentiation
by subject matter, there's also quite a bit of overlap too. The
eager explorer will find a great deal of Hispanic/Latino-oriented
news and content to chew on.
UPDATE:
Our company, in conjunction with Willard
Bishop Consulting and About
Marketing Solutions, will be entering an agreement with Retail
Wire to develop a discrete ethnic retail section to examine
ethnic merchandising and retailing issues. Details are forthcoming,
but you can be sure that one of the things I will explore is the
inclusion of somekind of weblog component. Look for an announcement
in 2004.
Posted by Thomas Tseng,
1:18 am
Monday,
December 8, 2003
Abercrombie's
Blues
Abercrombie
& Fitch, the clothing retailer, continues to get knocked on
all sides. A year after kicking up a
storm of controversy over its Asian-themed t-shirts (remember
"Two
Wongs Can Make It White"?), forcing a national recall
of the entire line, the apparel company has been hit with a
federal class action lawsuit claiming that the company discriminates
against people of color---including present and former Latino,
Asian, and African American employees. According to the plaintiffs
(whose numbers appear to have grown since July), the company allegedly
promotes "a virtually all-white image and discriminates against
minorities in hiring and firing." This lawsuit was the subject
of a
60 minutes story yesterday:
60 Minutes asked some former
Abercrombie store managers what they thought. Andrea Mandrick
was hired while she shopped at a Kansas City store. Dan Moon
is a former model.
How does Moon think he got
his job? “I think it [his look] was 90 percent of it.
And your interaction with, you know, other people, was 10
percent,” he says.
Mandrick and Moon say that
when corporate reps would visit a store and spotted a sales
rep that didn’t meet their standards, they were told
to reduce the offender’s hours.
“I was sick of getting
my schedule back every week with lines through names,”
says Mandrick. “I can't look the people that work for
me, that wanna be there, in the eye and say, ‘You know,
lie to them and say, ‘Oh, we don't have hours.’
When really it's because they weren't pretty enough.”
What happened when minorities
came in looking for a job?
“We were told to say,
‘We're always accepting applications And basically, then
just file it away in either the yes pile -- you know, to call
them back and get them in there for that group interview,
or the no pile."
And she said they would end
up in the no pile based on looks.
----------------
However, both Mandrick and Moon say they didn’t feel
that Abercrombie was engaging in institutionalized racism,
but rather institutionalized “look-ism.”
The
"look-ism" vs. "racism" angle provides an
interesting debate, but since physical appearance overlaps on
both ends, it may be a very, very thin thread of defense. The
woes don't end there for the troubled retailer. On top of things,
the bad boy clothing company has also been targeted as a
smut peddler for its notoriously ribald catalogues by parents
and religious groups, forcing yet
another recall; this time, of the publication in question.
Meanwhile, last Friday's Wall
Street Journal indicates that A&F's November in-store
sales have plummeted 13%, considerably steeper than the 5%
originally projected by forecasters. This is accompanied by a
near 9.6% drop in their share price on Wall Street.
On
the slim chance any executives of Abercrombie & Fitch happen
to be reading this, I have some surefire solutions for lifting
your company out of the doldrums: start by reading this book.
Posted by Thomas Tseng,
5:48 pm
Tuesday,
December 2, 2003
What
About Market Researchers?
Amusing
survey results released by CNN/USA
Today/Gallup today asking a thousand adults nationwide: "How
would you rate the honesty and ethnical standards of people in
these different fields?" According to those who were
ranked "very high/high":
| |
Nurses |
83% |
| |
Medical
doctors
|
68% |
| |
Veterinarians |
68% |
| |
Druggists,
pharamacists |
67% |
| |
Dentists |
61% |
| |
College
teachers |
59% |
| |
Engineers |
59% |
| |
Policemen |
59% |
| |
Clergy |
56% |
| |
Psychiatrists |
38% |
| |
Bankers |
35% |
| |
Chiropractors |
31% |
| |
State
Governors |
26% |
| |
Journalists |
25% |
| |
Senators |
20% |
| |
Business
Executives |
18% |
| |
Congressmen |
17% |
| |
Lawyers |
16% |
| |
Stockbrokers |
15% |
| |
Advertising
practitioners |
12% |
| |
Insurance
salesmen |
12% |
| |
HMO
managers |
9% |
| |
Car
salesmen |
7% |
Interestingly,
the top five professions (at least in this admittedly limited
field) are all in the healthcare profession. Of those in marketing,
the only related occupation mentioned here are Advertising practitioners
-- who rank just below Lawyers and Stockbrokers at 12%.
Ouch.
Posted by Thomas Tseng,
12:24 pm
Monday,
December 1, 2003
Monday
Medley
I'm
still recovering from a turkey hangover, so today's post will
be hodgepodge of noteworthy news items (to me anyways) over the
past several days:
- First,
Univision is producing their very first
telenovela in the City of Angels as a way of staving off
increasing competition for ad dollars in the Spanish-language
television market. This production also represents a move by
the network to reduce its dependence on Televisa, Mexico's largest
supplier of soap operas.
Enter
"Te Amare en Silencio," packed with scenes of Hollywood,
South Bay beaches and glamorous Rodeo Drive. The show boasts
a former Mexican soap opera sensation and the flavor of Southern
California, something missing from Televisa's studio productions.
"There's
been a push to make these shows more relevant to the U.S.
audience," said Rosa Serrano, a senior vice president
of the ad-buying firm Initiative.
---
"If
we make the ratings that we are expecting, then we might have
the opportunity to produce more in Los Angeles," Yanez
said. "And that would provide a fountain of work for
Latinos."
Univision
also is interested in exporting the telenovela to other countries.
The Los Angeles location shots were included to give the show
extra appeal to U.S. Latinos, and those who live abroad.
(Los
Angeles Times, 12/01/03)
- Say
what you will about MTV, but they grasp the culturally eclectic
nature of American youth culture. In late December, the youth
network will be airing a TV movie, Volcano
High, described as The Matrix meets Crouching
Tiger, Hidden Dragon --- a
high-tech, teen kung-fu flick originally produced and released
in Korea in 2001.
Here's
the twist: to broadcast the film to their English-speaking
viewers, MTV will be using the dubbed voices of some of today's
hottest
hip hop stars -- including Andre 3000, Snoop Dogg, and
Mya -- and will also include a hip hop-themed soundtrack.
Truly post-ethnic,
if you ask me.
- Not
only will Los Angeles be exporting telenovelas, we also export
East L.A. outlaw style to wit. According to yesterday's
New York Times, the cholo flava is all the rage these days in
NYC. Coming to a department store near you:
Mr.
Gasia is among a wave of young Mexican-Americans in New York
who have imported the East Los Angeles outlaw look, though
not necessarily the lifestyle, from the West Coast. In cities
across the country, young Latino men and some women are picking
up on the same trend, incorporating elements of cholo into
their street garb, conferring on the style an authenticity
that commends it to the would-be hip.
"Cholo
is definitely bubbling under in a big way," said Rodrigo
Salazar, the editor in chief of Urban Latino, a magazine for
young Hispanics. Adopting its provocative insignia —
low-slung chinos, bandannas folded low on the head and florid
religious tattoos — is a way for some young Latinos to
register pride and to stake a claim on their own culture,
Mr. Salazar said. And lately some of those gritty elements
have seeped into the fashion vernacular of non-Latinos as
well.
---
As with hip-hop and punk before,
it is a fascination with the grittier side of life that makes
cholo style alluring to fashion followers.
"We began to see it on
the streets about two years ago, but now, what's weird is
that you are starting to see it on housewives," said
Ed Burstell, general manager of Henri Bendel, the Manhattan
emporium, who last week made a trend-scouting expedition to
Los Angeles that included a visit to the east side barrios.
- Finally,
a general announcement: I will be speaking this Wednesday at
the IV
Americas Food & Beverage Show for the World Trade Center
Miami.
The topic will be "Increasing
Supermarket Sales by Targeting Hispanic & Other Groups,"
and I am serving as a last-minute replacement for our friend,
Terry Soto of About
Marketing Solutions, who unfortunately is still recovering
from her wisdom tooth extraction. If you're in Miami, feel free
to drop by and say "hi".
Okay,
I'm out!
Posted by Thomas Tseng,
3:32 pm
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