The Rotten Truth: What Has Happened to Fangoria?

And what can be done to revive the brand?

This is an editorial that’s been in the works for about a week now and I’ve debated back and forth on writing it at all. I’d like to thank the fellas at HorrorBid.com – and their excellent approach on same topic – for lighting a fire under my ass to get this finished.

The speculation train has left the station, racing from one site to the next spurring more rumors and theories. It’s passenger this time? Fangoria magazine.

As a former writer of this aging horror banner, and as a fan still adding old issues to my collection (what can I say? I like to draw the “treasure hunt” out), I share pangs of concern that many genre fans are feeling right now. 2010 has not been a kind mistress to Fangoria’s web counterpart. To be honest, since Fangoria.com re-launched with a new look within the last year, its history has been indecisive at best. The site has been up and down, and I’m not talking about the traffic. Sporadically updated (yes, I’d visit more than once a day). And the design would fluctuate. Furthermore, its content questionably steered into music, sometimes more than any other medium.

Then the site went belly up and visitors were welcomed with a simple title card on a white background. That is, until I was pointed to Fangoria’s “news blog” (right here). It appeared it was business as usual for managing editor Michael Gingold, frequent web news contributor, and editor Tony Timpone. Updates started coming in on sundry theatrical and direct-to-DVD titles, and a few features from contributing writers are popping up, too.

But this begs the question: What the hell is happening over at camp Fangoria?

I’ve reached out to Tony, who’s usually good at getting back to me right away, but I have heard nothing since I put in a query on Monday. And naturally, I’m getting all sorts of stories: About the web team brought in last year getting scrapped and how the site was indefinitely down as yet another re-launch is being planned. Regardless, before running around screaming like my pants are on fire lamenting the demise of a beloved magazine I think there are a few things to take into account.

First and foremost, this is a rough time for print. The economy hasn’t done the business any favors, forcing many newspapers and magazines to buckle. It’s a telling sign when magazines like Premiere, Cinefantastique (or CFQ to the geek hipsters that retooled that title) and Starlog shift their focus to online where their mettle is once again tested (some brands have tried and failed). There has also been speculation on Fangoria’s financial front since the brand was placed into new ownership. I’m not going to try and pretend to know about the business side of it and the talks of bankruptcy because I don’t rightly know about any of that. But again, that’s another factor to consider.

I do think there’s still worth to a magazine which has been around for over three decades. Due to the nature of a few recent projects, I found myself sifting through old issues of the â80s and finding some invaluable information and features. There’s a voice in the old issues, and a focus, that has been lost over the years.

Now, due to the ever-expanding nature of the media, Fangoria has stumbled here and there to try and keep up. There’s Tony and Mike holding down the magazine which, in itself, is a constant adjustment and an increasingly difficult challenge because of the nature of selling ads, the film biz, its secrecy and stranglehold on the information it releases these days. However, there’s also the need to maintain a web presence, a need to maintain its footing in the genre among the growing list of horror sites and blogs. I’ve watched the Fangoria brand contend with this by spreading itself thin. In addition to the magazine, website and convention duties, Fangoria branched into comic books, radio and music.

Again, I don’t know what kind of conversations are being had in the halls of the magazine. But I always thought Fangoria tried to expand too fast and across too many platforms. Baby steps were needed and they needed to begin with the magazine. And I’m not just talking about redesigning the cover (I miss that damn film strip on the side). The content, voice and interior design need an overhaul. In a lateral move, find a web staff to work with Tony and Mike on a strategy to doll out web-only features and news, so the pair can focus only on the magazine, because I get the feeling their duties are being stretched. With this dual presence solidified, then consider other avenues. Streamline the convention circuit approach. Hit the podcast scene, etc. But above all, make sure Fangoria as a magazine is healthy and fresh. For some time now, I think the brand has been ailing and overexerted. Has it made me stop buying the magazine? Not at all, I have the utmost respect for it. But Fangoria’s ups and downs have certainly had me thinking about the possibilities it can explore so it not only satisfies those who grew up reading the magazine but it has a long-lasting effect on an entirely new generation of horror fans.

With issue #300 fast approaching, I’ve got my fingers crossed Fangoria’s web troubles are merely the usual pains of restructuring and I look forward to their future plans.

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