Oakland Magazine

Publication analysis


About the publication

Title: Oakland Magazine

ISSN: N/A

Website: http://www.oaklandmagazine.com/

Purpose, objective, or mission: Oakland Magazine is to speak to Oakland and East Bay (California) residents about “the exceptional beauty, diversity, and quality of life of Oakland and the greater East Bay.”1

Target audience: Oakland and East Bay residents.2

Publisher: Telegraph Media.3

Peer reviewed? No. 4

Type: Civilian, regional magazine.

Medium: Print and online.

Content: Sections include reporting; lifestyle; food and drink; and arts and culture, as they relate to the Oakland area. 5

Frequency of publication: Issues are published in print and online 10 times a year.6

About the publication’s submission guidelines

Location of submission guidelines: http://www.oaklandmagazine.com/Oakland-Magazine/About-Us/Jobs/

Types of contributions accepted: “Ideal contributors are based in the East Bay and know the area’s diversions, people, issues and dynamics. It’s also important to be familiar with our magazines. We’re looking for good generalists as well as contributors who want to report on and write news and politics, lifestyle issues, food and drink, and arts and culture.”7

Submission and review process: From the website: “Send a cover letter, resume, a writing sample, and a story idea to judy [at] alamedamgazine.com or judy [at] oaklandmagazine.com. Please write ‘Freelance Writer’ in your e-mail subject line. 8

“BEFORE YOU PITCH any ideas, however, it’s imperative that you familiarize yourself with our magazines, which includes general understanding of what our lifestyle-oriented magazines actually cover and our sections and departments. The editor prefers writers to pitch articles for specific sections of the magazine when possible. All queries should be well thought out and well researched yet short, to the point, and information packed. Upon receipt of a query that may interest the editor, clips and writing samples will be requested as evidence of the writer’s ability to complete the proposed assignment. Those should be sent via e-mail as attachments.”9

“We publish everything from 350-word shorts to 2,500-plus word in-depth features, with most articles somewhere between those extremes. In general, we run a majority of 500-word and 750-word to 1,000-word articles. Our lead-time is about three months. Pay depends on the complexity of the assignment, and Telegraph Media pays upon publication.”10

We publish everything from 350-word shorts to 2,500-plus word in-depth features, with most articles somewhere between those extremes. In general, we run a majority of 500-word and 750-word to 1,000-word articles. Our lead-time is about three months. Pay depends on the complexity of the assignment, and Telegraph Media pays upon publication.”11

Editorial tone: Conversational and informal.

Style guide used: Publication requests submissions be in AP style. 12

Conclusion: Evaluation of publication’s potential for LIS authors

Oakland Magazine editors are probably not thinking about libraries when they are setting up their issues. However, as the magazine’s focus is on Oakland culture, the right library-oriented story could work very well, and could be wonderful marketing for local libraries. Potential writers should make sure that their pitches are well crafted and well timed.

 

Audience analysis


About the publication’s readers

Publication circulation: 20,000.13

Audience location and language or cultural considerations: The readers of Oakland Magazine primarily live in the city of Oakland, CA, but many readers may also live in the greater Bay Area. Writers should live in the area, as the articles are very geographically specific. English language publication for affluent active adults in the Oakland area and Bay Area.14

Reader characteristics: Readers of Oakland Magazine are adults interested in making the most of their time in the Oakland area. Their media kit proudly states that they reach a demographic with plenty of buying power, suggesting a possible source for financial support for libraries.15

Oakland Magazine is not profession-specific. Nonetheless, because of the readership’s demographic, it may be safely assumed that many of the readers are active professionals. Potential writers for Oakland Magazine wishing to write LIS-related essays should avoid technical jargon, and should be general enough in their approach that people from many different professions can find interesting access points into the article. Most readers probably do not consider libraries often but would be interested in strengthening their community (especially if they could see and be seen while doing it). Thus, pieces that emphasize either community responsibility or useful free resources would probably be the most advantageous for this publication.

Knowledge of LIS subject matter: Scant. Writers will certainly want to avoid LIS jargon and overly in-depth articles.

Conclusion: Analysis of reader characteristics and their potential impact on authors

Readers of Oakland Magazine probably have little knowledge of library-oriented challenges and concerns, but are probably interested in community events. As such, Oakland Magazine could be a good venue to promote library events and library-positive opinion pieces. Any writing regarding libraries would have to be spun in a “feel-good-about-yourself” direction, so that the readers’ interests would be held. That said, a library-related article could have a large impact on an affluent, educated group — the very people who often will support libraries and their programs with financial donations.

Last updated: October 10, 2018


References

Show 15 footnotes

  1. “About Us,” OaklandMagazine.com, accessed October 18, 2016, http://www.oaklandmagazine.com/Oakland-Magazine/About-Us/
  2. “About Us.”
  3. “About Us.”
  4. “Jobs,” OaklandMagazine.com, accessed October 18, 2016, http://www.oaklandmagazine.com/Oakland-Magazine/About-Us/Jobs/
  5. “About Us.”
  6. “About Us.”
  7. “Jobs.”
  8. “Jobs.”
  9. “Jobs.”
  10. “Jobs.”
  11. “Jobs.”
  12. “Jobs.”
  13. “Media Kit,” OaklandMagazine.com, accessed October 9, 2018, https://www.oaklandmagazine.com/pdf/Media%20Kit-OM%202018.pdf
  14. “Media Kit.”
  15. “Media Kit.”
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