Doctor Who Insider cancelled

[23skidoo]

Under the "I'm surprised it lasted this long" column, Doctor Who Insider magazine has been cancelled:

http://www.doctorwhonews.net/2012/01/dwn260112210008-doctor-who-insider.html

That's the spinoff of Doctor Who Magazine that was launched last year for US and Canadian readers if you didn't know. And it's always seemed a bit unnecessary since the mothership, Doctor Who Magazine, is widely available here. That said, recent issues have actually managed to go in directions DWM hasn't done much with. The final issue, for example, featured articles on the Scream of the Shalka webcast. But they never got round to, for example, doing their own comic strip stories. On the other hand, Insider was able to be more timely in some of its stories, as opposed to DWM which has a one-month lag in North American distribution (i.e. the Christmas issue didn't come out here till mid-January, for example).

It's probably also another sign of print fading (it's a bit disturbing that this is an "insta-cancellation"meaning the last issue has already been published, unlike, say, Torchwood magazine which was allowed to publish one or two more after it was cancelled). But if the closure of Insider increases the survivability of DWM, then this is a good thing ultimately. I'd imagine we'll probably see some unpublished Insider material repurposed for DWM.

According to Panini's statement in that news link subscribers may be able to transfer over to DWM so that's a good sign for DWM.

Alex

 

[Allyn Gibson]

Under the "I'm surprised it lasted this long" column, Doctor Who Insider magazine has been cancelled:

The problem with DWI was that it was never clear who it was for. BBC America's target Doctor Who audience is 18-35, but DWI read like it was aimed lower until, as you point out, the later issues, but by that point the damage was done.

And it's always seemed a bit unnecessary since the mothership, Doctor Who Magazine, is widely available here.

The idea of DWI wasn't a bad one -- a Doctor Who magazine for North American fans. I don't think that the Tunbridge Wells crew really grasped what made North American fandom and the North American experience different.

But they never got round to, for example, doing their own comic strip stories.

I don't think they could have as IDW has the North American comics rights. DWI might have been able to have comics if it were treated as an import, like DWM is.

But if the closure of Insider increases the survivability of DWM, then this is a good thing ultimately.

Given that DWM is one of Britain's top-selling magazines at present, I don't expect it's in any danger of cancellation.

 

[23skidoo]

^ I agree with you on all points. And yeah, they were no doubt hogtied re: comic strips because of IDW. They could have run some short stories, though, though that might have gone against the "shorter, more illustration-heavy" format they went with.

The big thing I agree with you on is the fact the magazine never really seemed to serve a purpose, not with DWM around. And the fact they used the same writing crew as DWM, I always wondered whether any of the articles were rejects or overflow from DWM. Maybe if they'd established an independent editorial team based in the US it might have found its own voice sooner. Indeed, the write-up on the Doctor Who News Page says it was launched to "focus on Doctor Who in the US and Canada" yet it really didn't. Much as it was cool to read about Scream of the Shalka in the final issue, for example, that article was more applicable to DWM (going back to the question as to whether it was overflow). It was cool to see them promoting Big Finish audios though, since they're not very well known in North America (does the wider Stargate fan community here even know about the audio dramas featuring original cast members Big Finish does, for example).

Alex

 

[Allyn Gibson]

^ I agree with you on all points. And yeah, they were no doubt hogtied re: comic strips because of IDW. They could have run some short stories, though, though that might have gone against the "shorter, more illustration-heavy" format they went with.

I don't know if they could have done prose fiction, it's possible their license didn't cover that.

The weird thing about the "shorter, more illustration-heavy" format is that, after reading DWM, it felt like I was being talked down to by DWI. DWM is a meaty magazine. DWI was superficial.

Maybe if they'd established an independent editorial team based in the US it might have found its own voice sooner.

Totally agreed.

Indeed, the write-up on the Doctor Who News Page says it was launched to "focus on Doctor Who in the US and Canada" yet it really didn't.

The thing that always mystified me about DWI was its lack of IDW coverage, since IDW is producing Doctor Who exclusively for the North American market. I understand why DWM doesn't cover IDW's output -- the publisher's comics aren't officially available in the UK, the magazine's target audience -- but IDW's products are widely available to DWI's intended audience.

 

[Lonemagpie]

Never heard of it!

 

[23skidoo]

I don't know if they could have done prose fiction, it's possible their license didn't cover that.

Quite possible. You don't see short fiction in DWM either, and the BBC took back the license for short fiction from Big Finish in 2009 (which has led me to assume they're planning something in the future - maybe relaunching Short Trips?).

The weird thing about the "shorter, more illustration-heavy" format is that, after reading DWM, it felt like I was being talked down to by DWI. DWM is a meaty magazine. DWI was superficial.

I don't know about the talked down to part, but I did get the feeling the magazine was aimed at people who, somehow, didn't know DWM existed or that there were stories to tell about the original series, etc. Yet I never saw DWI in any shop (magazine shop, comic shop) where it wasn't on the rack next to DWM. Even the most casual of fans would be aware of it. Of course there is also this attitude that North Americans don't read, so the fact they went with shorter articles, more pictures - maybe they thought our attention spans wouldn't handle the big articles in DWM. Chalk up another underestimation of Doctor Who's audience.

(Ironically, all that said, I think they might have done better if Insider had simply been a repackaged version of the kids-only Doctor Who Adventures, even without the comic strip).

The thing that always mystified me about DWI was its lack of IDW coverage, since IDW is producing Doctor Who exclusively for the North American market. I understand why DWM doesn't cover IDW's output -- the publisher's comics aren't officially available in the UK, the magazine's target audience -- but IDW's products are widely available to DWI's intended audience.

I think it was straight out competition. Panini is in direct competition with IDW in North America - you can buy Panini's omnibus reprints of the DWM comic strip, which amazingly are available for sale here despite IDW's Doctor Who Classics line doing the same thing. And maybe IDW is in bed with another publisher and wouldn't play ball with Panini. I agree though, it was conspicuous by its absence. Yet they covered Big Finish releases which are not easily obtainable in North America, particularly the US. It was weird.

I just hope folks don't see this as a sign of the franchise fading. I don't see this as a sign of that at all; it was an experiment that didn't work, pure and simple. Can't fault Panini for trying.

Never heard of it!

Oh, and there's that too!

Alex

 

[Allyn Gibson]

The thing that always mystified me about DWI was its lack of IDW coverage, since IDW is producing Doctor Who exclusively for the North American market. I understand why DWM doesn't cover IDW's output -- the publisher's comics aren't officially available in the UK, the magazine's target audience -- but IDW's products are widely available to DWI's intended audience.

I think it was straight out competition. Panini is in direct competition with IDW in North America - you can buy Panini's omnibus reprints of the DWM comic strip, which amazingly are available for sale here despite IDW's Doctor Who Classics line doing the same thing. And maybe IDW is in bed with another publisher and wouldn't play ball with Panini. I agree though, it was conspicuous by its absence.

I both agree and disagree with this.

Where I disagree -- IDW and Panini have been working together on Doctor Who Classics. IDW is getting the cleaned up pages that Panini is using for their graphic novels from Panini and then colorizing them. And when one issue fell short (the last issue of the Davison run, if I remember correctly), IDW asked Panini if they could run something else to fill out the issue, and Panini sent them something they could use. By all appearances, they have a cordial working relationship.

Where I agree -- The current DWM editorial team does show certain blinders in their coverage. DWM's book coverage has been near-appalling for about two years now. I won't say it was good to start with, but these days the unofficial books get more notice in the Magazine than the official BBC Books output. (If I remember correctly, they didn't even add The Coming of the Terraphiles to the upcoming merch releases list.) So it's not unreasonable that DWI, which drew on the same people as DWM, could have carried over the same biases in its coverage despite a good relationship with a competing publisher.

 

[StCoop]

Where I agree -- The current DWM editorial team does show certain blinders in their coverage.

Tom Spilsbury has been clear that DWM's lack of regular Big Finish coverage is due to his lack of interest in their output.

You'd think the Editor of the main publication for Doctor Who fans would try to cover all aspects of the franchise regards of whether he likes them or not but he does seem to be more interested in kissing Moffat's backside then anything else.

(As has been mentioned before it'll be interesting to see how they handle the film if and when it gets into production.)

 

[Allyn Gibson]

Tom Spilsbury has been clear that DWM's lack of regular Big Finish coverage is due to his lack of interest in their output.

You'd think the Editor of the main publication for Doctor Who fans would try to cover all aspects of the franchise regards of whether he likes them or not but he does seem to be more interested in kissing Moffat's backside then anything else.

In Spillsbury's defense, with a series actively on the air, the magazine does have to be something of a propaganda arm for the series and it needs to take its lead from that. That's a factor that previous editors haven't had to consider. For all that the DWM crew says that they're "independent" of BBC editorial mandates, there's no way that's even possible. If Moffat or his bosses say to Spillsbury (or Spillsbury's bosses), "Jump," Spillsbury has to.

(As has been mentioned before it'll be interesting to see how they handle the film if and when it gets into production.)

My hunch is that Spillsbury would ignore it for as long as possible, until someone a few pay grades over Moffat (or his successor) at the BBC discovered that their investment wasn't getting covered and decided to drop the hammer on Panini.

 

[23skidoo]

Where I disagree -- IDW and Panini have been working together on Doctor Who Classics. IDW is getting the cleaned up pages that Panini is using for their graphic novels from Panini and then colorizing them. And when one issue fell short (the last issue of the Davison run, if I remember correctly), IDW asked Panini if they could run something else to fill out the issue, and Panini sent them something they could use. By all appearances, they have a cordial working relationship.

It's possible that while one end of things worked together, the other end of things didn't. I've seen that before where one aspect of a publishing company may have no idea what another part is up to. I've seen that happen in newspapers where an arm's-length supplement might sponsor something that the main newspaper has blacklisted. Not saying that's the case here, of course. But I could still see DWI being caught between a rock and a hard place, not necessarily wanting to promote the competition, even though it would fit in perfectly with the mandate they established.

Where I agree -- The current DWM editorial team does show certain blinders in their coverage. DWM's book coverage has been near-appalling for about two years now. I won't say it was good to start with, but these days the unofficial books get more notice in the Magazine than the official BBC Books output. (If I remember correctly, they didn't even add The Coming of the Terraphiles to the upcoming merch releases list.) So it's not unreasonable that DWI, which drew on the same people as DWM, could have carried over the same biases in its coverage despite a good relationship with a competing publisher.

DWM is funny that way. I know it gets knocked regularly for being bias - in that it's obviously a promotional tool for the TV series. While there may be criticisms made of episodes, etc., you're not likely to find anyone else doing a 5-page spread on why they think Steven Moffat sucks . But it's always been a promotional tool, to an extent. And given the wealth of inside knowledge we've had, plus having RTD and Moffat offer editorial content, and the comic strips, etc being closer-tied to the TV series, I'd be willing to yield the "hard-hitting" aspect to the zines and SFX, etc. (DWIN's Enlightenment recently ran a fascinating essay on why the Doctor should always remain asexual - you'll never see that in DWM, while an earlier issue featured a damning expose on the CBC's mishandling of Doctor Who before it lost the franchise to the Space channel) in favor of learning more about how my favorite show is made. That said, this was another area where DWI might have been able to make a difference. If they had decided to become a venue for people who, in all fairness, have bones to pick with the series, or who might want to write about why they don't think Tom Baker was "all that" - that might have been a way for DWI to develop its own voice.

Re: Spilsbury and Big Finish. I dunno - I think their coverage has been OK, and they certainly run the reviews and the like. I'm surprised that the editor would have "lack of interest" considering not only is BF joined at the hip with AudioGO now, and is involved in restoring Reign of Terror, and managed what the BBC proper couldn't do and get Tom Baker back into the fold. We don't get the DWM-exclusive freebies as much as we used to from Big Finish.

But then when an editor takes over a publication, it changes to suit the editor's tastes. The next editor of DWM might not be as friendly with the current production team, or might decide that everything that needed to be said about the classic series has been said.

Alex

 

[CaptainMatt]

Pity, I rather liked seeing an additional WHO magazine on the newstands.

 

[Worf2DS9]

Dang, and I'd been thinking about giving DWI another shot while giving the "mothership" DWM a rest. I've still got two issues on the coffee table I haven't even looked at yet. Aside from the lag giving the mag a "that was so last month" vibe in N.A., I find their typeface so friggin' small in most of their articles. What are they using, 6pt? Maybe it's their way of packing more content into each article, but damn, when I see a wall of tiny type like that I'd just as soon turn the page.

 

[C.E. Evans]

Doctor Who Insider was a lot more easier to find and obtain than Doctor Who Magazine in my area. I could go into most local grocery stores and pick up a copy of DWI. DWM was confined to comic book shops and book stores (both of which are increasingly few and far between these days).

 

[Captain Dago]

Glad I subscribed to DWM as well. DWI never seemed to me to find the right tone. Definitely NOT a U.S. view, although it claimed to be, and too often aimed at the kiddy set. I probably would have let my subscription lapse. Now I guess I'll get a refund.

 

[Stevil2001]

Where I agree -- The current DWM editorial team does show certain blinders in their coverage.

Tom Spilsbury has been clear that DWM's lack of regular Big Finish coverage is due to his lack of interest in their output.

You'd think the Editor of the main publication for Doctor Who fans would try to cover all aspects of the franchise regards of whether he likes them or not but he does seem to be more interested in kissing Moffat's backside then anything else.

(As has been mentioned before it'll be interesting to see how they handle the film if and when it gets into production.)

DWM has decent Big Finish coverage, I think. Dan Tostevin writes semi-regular features about it. They had a big interview feature when the NEDAs ended, and a Christopher Benjamin/Trevor Baxter interview promoting Jago & Litefoot. More than the novels or comics, for sure.