That’s right, product placement in Smithsonian Magazine.
Two product placement articles this month. First this story on a “beer archaeologist.” It essentially turns out to be an article-length advertisement for Dogfish Head Brewery, which is working in conjunction with this guy to recreate ancient brews which you can now purchase at your local store!!! (Gee, I can’t imagine how that could compromise the science at all.)
Then there’s a movie promo article on the true story of a killer whale, coming soon to a screen near you!!!
(That second article bothers me less, because it’s actually more up-front about being a product placement piece.)
Now, I know magazines are struggling to make ends meet these days, what with declining circulation and the transition to the internet and all, and it doesn’t surprise me at all to find a product placement article in, say, a Time or a Newsweek these days, but product placement in The Smithsonian? A little disheartening.
OK, that’s more of a rant than a discussion starter I guess. But has anyone else noticed the trend?