The entire editorial department at the gay lifestyle magazine Out will be jobless on Friday, Capital New York reports, but another opportunity — that may or may not portend the end of magazine journalism as we know it — awaits them. Editor-in-chief Aaron Hicklin announced today that he’s launching something called Grand Editorial, a company hoping to supply “customized content for a range of consumer titles and corporate clients,” and he wants to hire “most” of Out’s twelve editorial employees. Guess who his first client is?
That’s right: Hicklin will be providing the content for Out. As for those who decide to still be involved, Capital reports they will be contracted freelancers: “The gig will come with flexible hours and the opportunity to work on other projects in the Grand stable, but not full-time salaries or benefits.” Hicklin said, “This was not a cost-cutting measure,” although some costs (salaries, benefits) appear to be getting cut.
Freelancing for a content company contracted by Out may be preferable to unemployment, but surely laid-off employees will keep in mind that the magazine’s publisher Here Media is notoriously bad at paying freelancers.
