Will Editors Bend for Advertising Dollars?

From increasing demand for editorial credits and ads disguised as editorial content to calls for cover presence, advertisers are ratcheting up pressure on magazines for treatments that blur church-state lines, according to editors, publishers and media buyers.

Industry sources say that while advertisers have from time to time pushed the church-state envelope, their requests have become more brazen. The growth of product placement, increased pressure to demonstrate ROI, the growing importance of ad revenue relative to circulation revenue and the economic downturn have all emboldened advertisers to become more aggressive, they say — and editors and publishers are finding it harder to say no.

One of the largest indicators of the growing closeness between edit and sales is the increasing role of editorial credits.