Yellow Journalism

Attention, media friends: Now that Viet Hoang is publishing Yellow magazine, an old term takes on a whole new meaning.

At the end of the 19th Century, Americans got their news from newspapers – they were pretty much the only news sources. Major newspapers like Joseph Pulitzer’s New York World and William Randolph Hearst’s San Francisco Examiner and later the New York Morning Journal changed their newspapers to attract more readers (the “circulation wars”). Sensational stories and scandalous news coverage were ordered up; garish drawings and comic strips were added. Editors actively demanded and printed irresponsible and flamboyant news reporting. After Pulitzer began publishing color comic sections that included a strip entitled "The Yellow Kid" in early 1896, this type of paper was labeled yellow journalism.

A funny thing happened on the way to the 21st Century: the complexion of America changed.

Today (by 2004 figures, www.infoplease.com), Asians and Asian-Americans make up 4.2% of our population, more than 12 million of us. Additional studies show that this part of our population is one of the best educated and the most affluent in our history.

Yellow, which Hoang began publishing last spring, appeals to this part of Houston’s kaleidoscopic population. It’s up-to-the-moment, vivid, and beautifully produced. These days, it’s referred to as a niche publication, and it’s one of the best designed new magazines in the Houston area.

It focuses on fashion, lifestyle, art, and entertainment, and the Asian-American people who are involved in these areas. The only “yellow kids” that appear in its pages are artists, fashion models, doctors, politicians, and restaurateurs – talented, young, and trendy.

It’s already attracting major advertisers, who recognize the significant buying power that Asian-Americans represent. The September number is available now, and if you haven’t seen it, you should pick up a copy or go to www.yellowmags.com. It’ll change the way you think about population segments and give you a creative media opportunity to take to your retail and commercial clients.

Do it today. There’s no better sound that that of a stereotype being smashed.