Question for New Yorker subscribers

Cafe Society
21

The New Yorker started in my family when mom was a budding young social worker back in '49, beginning her subscription. As soon as my brother was on his own, he got a subscription, while mom handed down whatever she finished to me, and then when she passed, my brother hands his down to me now.
Thus, I’ve always read it for free. :innocent:

Yep, me too. A logical progression. :slightly_smiling_face:

Precisely this, trying to limit the stack to three issues on the ole loo, where I relegate the slightly-less interesting reading stuff.

Yeah me too - why the hell is that? And then I…

…while always making sure to take in every cartoon (and the extremely rare, now) italicized, goofy (and usually tiny) news blurbs - with titles like “In Other News Dept.” or “Constabulary Notes From All Over” - that always appeared at the end of an article.
In The Talk of the Town section, I take in only the music and movie reviews. (pffft…“Tables For Two”? Whatevs). Funny, but I always skip the poilitcal editorials because that stuff’s always already covered here, at this site.

Then I go back to starting into the articles with the flipped page corners.

Always look forward to Jon Lee Anderson’s very in-depth pieces, usually covering strife abroad, as well as anything by Jane Mayer, Evan Osnos, Alex Ross, among a host of many great staff writers.

Meh, other than tarting it up a little, Mrs. Brown didn’t really put me off.
Didn’t exactly bemoan her departure either.
Whoa Ian Frazier sure didn’t like her.

Good you’re doing it in that order. :slightly_smiling_face:

22

My Vermont in-laws used to get TNY, and when we visited them I would enjoy reading the magazine. It always impressed me as erudite and sophisticated, and I like the NYC vibe, although I’ve only been in the city a few times in my life.

When I got my current job I received an ultracheap subscription offer (including a tote bag!) and took it. Almost a year later, I cancelled before it would have been autorenewed at a much higher rate. Then I got another ultracheap offer, and renewed at that lower rate. I leave back issues in a nearby waiting room where I work.

I typically read any articles that catch my eye (usually one or two per issue) and check out the cartoons. I’ll also glance at the short movie reviews and Broadway updates. I know from past experience that the poems and fiction usually won’t be worth my time.

I also submit captions to TNY’s online caption contest weekly, but haven’t won yet, despite several times having written a better caption than any of the three finalists, dammit.

23

I always wondered which clever people were up for writing those captions. Now I know!

24

Well, thanks, but you’ve never seen one of mine. Yet!

25

You know we expect to be notified when it happens. :smiley:

26

I read the caption contest first, then the letters to the editor, then the restaurant review, then the Talk of the Town music section. I like to see if there are any musical artists that I would be interested in adding to my Spotify. From there, I begin at the beginning and read thru to the end. I skip anything that doesn’t hold my interest after the first page or so.
I read the fiction, even though often times I don’t understand it.

27

You’re welcome!

28

Love the NY. I many times find myself clipping out stories to send to friends and family. Sometimes I will get halfway through an interview though and think “geez this person is a total douchebag” and then move on. I read every issue though.

29

But of course. :wink:

30

I was thinking to myself that I used to read everything in the New Yorker (when I bought an issue) but I also skipped most of the poetry and fiction.

I also skip the fiction segments of the “This American Life” podcast.

31

My GF has a subscription and she pretty much reads it cover-to-cover. She will skip some bits she may deem uninteresting that week but mostly she reads it all.

She probably burns through the whole thing in 3-4 days (give or take).

32

I have subscribed to The New Yorker over two different periods. First, I subscribed during the 2010s. I tried to read the whole issue cover to cover (except for the fiction, which I never read). If I didn’t finish, I’d put the issue aside for later. I quit the subscription when I realized I had a huge pile of back issues I would never get to, and also because so many articles were about the Trump administration. (I hate him too, but I don’t want to read about him 24/7.)

About a year ago I decided to subscribe again. But this time my procedure is to go through the magazine once, reading anything I find interesting. After that it goes immediately into the recycle bin.

33

Typical three-week period (any three-week period):
Week 1: Read three or four articles (including the fiction piece), all the cartoons, the reviews, and do the crossword. That is, most of the magazine.
Week 2: Read one or two articles, and most of the cartoons.
Week 3: Read a couple cartoons, if that.
Rinse and repeat.

34

Some may be unaware that TNY has five crosswords a week at their site, hard Monday, Moderate Tuesday, easy Wednesday and Thursday, and themed Friday. I do them every day and so never do the paper one.

35

Thanks — I didn’t know that. But for me, NY Times Thursday through Saturday is more than enough of a time sink!