Ediorial: Esquire Feb 2009 cover-Innovation or a Threat to Editorial Integrity?

The February issue of Esquire blurs the boundary between advertising and editorial in new ways: right in the middle (see on Obama's shoulder) of the cover is a window, or peel-back flap with an invitation to “Open here”.

Opening the window reveals quotations from articles inside the issue and an advertisement for “One Way Out,” a new series on the Discovery Channel cable network. Those who leave the window unopened do not see the ad or the quotations.

New York Times reports that the concept was the brainchild of the editor-in-chief of Esquire, David Granger. “Everybody keeps talking about how print is an old medium. It is an old medium, but it doesn’t mean it’s a wrung-out medium or a tired medium,” Mr. Granger said to NYT.

However, the 'flap' cover issue has sparked much debate and is being viewed as being in contravention of guidelines put forth by the American Society of Magazine Editors (ASME). ASME has invited David Granger to justify himself before his peers at a member's lunch (Feb 24) where the proposed topics of discussion is: "Is the cover window on the Obama issue of Esquire an exciting print innovation -- or a threat to editorial integrity"