Printed Page 112

About 90 of the almost 20,600 American magazines now in existence reach circulations of 1 million or more. That means most magazines serve relatively small groups of readers. Of these, many are alternative magazines: They focus their articles on topics that lie far outside the mainstream—from punk rock to hobby farming to spouse-swapping. At any given time, there are more than 2,000 of these alternative periodicals in circulation, with many failing and others starting up every month.

Numerous alternative magazines have defined themselves in terms of politics—published either by the Left (the Progressive, In These Times, the Nation) or the Right (the National Review, American Spectator, Insight). Though their circulations may be relatively small, they often exert significant influence on politics by stimulating public debate and affecting citizens’ political choices.