Creeping Onto the Front Covers of Magazines, Paid Ads

As tough times send some publishers running for cover, marketers are running advertisements on the covers of some publications. The arrival of paid pitches on magazines' front covers — until now the province of editorial content — is emblematic of changing standards for advertising acceptability. One reason longtime policies are being rethought is, of course, the steep decline in ad revenue caused by competition from online media, coupled with the slowdown in demand for print ads as a result of the recession.