How many women’s magazines are there exactly?
Whenever my parents go on holiday, my mum makes sure she has reading material. This is usually in the form of a stack of women’s magazines, such as the one above. Today, I accompanied my dad, as he was securing a fresh supply for her.
In the Kiosk, I started wondering about several things.
- Are all women blonde and have blue eyes?
- Is it true, that all women care about is fashion, cooking, diets, and haircuts?
- How many women’s magazines are there exactly?
- Why do all these magazines have stereotypical female names? Lisa, Laura, Lea, Elle, Birgitte, … .
- Is there any men’s magazine called “Peter”, “John”, or “Steven”?
I tried to find some statistics. What I could find was incomplete. Counting the Wikipedia list tells me there are at least 50 German-speaking magazines. And I know, the list is not complete. Because some of the ones that my mum seems to read are not on the list. Next time, I pass by a Kiosk, I will count them all. Just for fun. (Update: I counted. My local kiosk has 45.)
That in itself is a testament to how wasteful capitalism is. All of these magazines have exactly the same content.
- Hairstyling tips
- Fashion recommendations
- Celebrity gossip
- Diet advice
- Cooking and Baking recipes
- Advice columns
