Chronicling the rise of hip-hop politics. The role blogs will
play in progressive politics. How Madison Avenue sells perpetual
adolescence. Considering the nightmarish consequences of leaving
Iraq prematurely.
Not the sort of stuff fans of the socialist, labor union-loving
In These
Times have become accustomed to since the Carter
administration. Not because the Chicago-based nonprofit hasn’t made
its mark on the media landscape year after defiant year. It’s just
that, since going from biweekly to monthly in 2006, the magazine
has a palpable, politically unpredictable energy-a little less
worry and a lot more fight.
Turns out it’s all about the staff, which is younger, more
diverse, and less likely to tolerate doctrinaire bromides. ‘We’re
building community. I read In These Times and I don’t feel
alone,’ explains 27-year-old publisher Tracy Van Slyke. ‘But we
don’t want to be the mouthpiece for the movement, we want to make
it better. We want to be provocative.’
According to Van Slyke, who started as a Chicago
Reporter intern and is three years younger than the magazine,
a number of staffers and contributors are in their 20s and ‘more
comfortable about critiquing what’s working or not working. And
people in the alternative media have been hesitant to do that-to
criticize the left.’
In These Times has also started showcasing more female
voices and regularly features two African American writers-sadly,
still an anomaly in the progressive press. You’re probably not
going to see an essay from Andrew Sullivan anytime soon, of
course-but it’s a good guess he’s reading.
Subscriptions: $19.95/yr. (12 issues); 800/827-0270;
www.inthesetimes.com.
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