Rolling Stone: Times Are A-Changin'

Yesterday I had the opportunity to visit the Rolling Stone offices as a part of NYU's class on editorial management. We passed Jann Wenner himself in the lobby, and then bumped into Peter Traverse at the elevator door. Beyond the star sightings, the highlight of the tour – which included a brief peek at Wenner Media's US Weekly and Men's Journal – was a trip down Rolling Stone's hall of covers (above). This highly-trafficked hallway (it led to two restrooms) chronicled every RS cover since John Lennon graced the front in 1967. The cover treatment has ranged wildly, from illustrations to glossy, staged band shots, but Yann and the gang have kept pretty true to form for an impressive length of time.

Speaking of Yann, touring Rolling Stone brings up an interesting quandary for publishers. When it comes to the owner and publisher of a magazine interacting with an editorial staff, how close it too close? From what we heard, Mr. Wenner has influence on nearly every page that gets approved in Rolling Stone. He also dictates what employees can, and can't, have on their desks. On the positive side, a strong hand is good because no one knows better than the founder how to stay connected to the magazine's roots. He was the only one there in '67 and so he has a unique perspective on the product's evolution.

On the other hand, everyone in our publishing class commented on the uniform (code for dull) design of recent issues of Rolling Stone. This is in stark contrast to the beautifully inventive typography of the old Rolling Stone. I couldn't help but feel like 'times they are a-changin' at Wenner Media and maybe the titan needs to loosen his grip a little or risk losing quality. Perhaps if the reins were loosened a little – heaven forbid there actually be a little rock music playing in the RS offices – editors and designers could rekindle that old sensibility. They might even have a little fun.