"Melissa" wrote in message
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Hi riverman,

On Wed, 18 Jan 2006 19:41:15 +0800, you wrote:

Oh yeah? Its been a desire of mine for many years to get printed in
a trade magazine; even better yet to get paid something for it.
You'd think after all these years of river stories, someone would
have contacted me...

HEY, MAGAZINE EDITORS!! I'M HERE, READY AND WILLING!

Be careful what you wish for! :-)

A few years ago, I was contacted by a supposedly
"outdoor/conservationist" magazine (based in NYC) to write a feature
article about my experiences paddling with the resident whales of my
local waters. The publisher sent me several copies of the magazine
(very glossy, and filled with advertising for the "upscale
conspicuous consumer"; with many of these items being quite
"environmentally unfriendly" in my view, even though their "target
consumer" was the "outdoor enthusiast").

Mags like Canadian Geographic struggle with this contradiction all the time.
A lot of their subscriber based would be people who are concerned about the
environment but who are also in middle and upper income territory, perfect
for shiny ads for big pollution spouting SUVs and the like. You need to make
money to run the magazine, yet at the same time you don't want to offend the
readership. A tricky business.