1. Read the article.

The Evolution of Fashion Journalism from Print to Digital

By Shire Lyon

NEW HAVEN, United States — People have been wearing clothes for centuries, but when did
the idea of fashion begin? Clothing has long been utilized as a means to distinguish the classes,
but this was far from fashion as the way we celebrate it today. The modern idea of
“fashion” started in Renaissance Europe. This era brought noteworthy changes to dressing
customs, and a struggle between the old and the new. Upper classes were concerned with
preserving identification of rank with luxurious clothing, while others became concerned with
future generations viewing the older generations as absurd and ridiculous in terms of dress.

Meanwhile, the idea of looking attractive to obtain a husband and keep him faithful began
trickling down, from the elite to lower classes of women. New colours and elements of clothing
including detachable sleeves were seen in the early 1500s in Basel, Switzerland. These trends
started with the highest classes but, within a few years, they were seen being worn by even
journeymen and prostitutes. These new trends slowly grew and evolved, and eventually became
the fashion we know today. Of course this puts the story of fashion very simply, but it gives you
a general concept of the beginnings of both fashion and the context for fashion writing.

How did fashion writing start?

The portraits of the wealthy might be thought of as the first communications of fashion and were
sometimes used in royal circles as a way of putting marriageable personages on display.
However, with the inception of “fashion” came fashion plates, which can be seen as the true start
of modern fashion communications. These fashion plates were engravings, illustrations and
drawings created for the purpose of conveying the newest styles of shoes, clothing and
hairstyles.

While fashion plates can be considered the origin of fashion magazines, since they gave the
exact details of a particular outfit, it was not until the French newspaper, the Mercure
Galant, that a publication dedicated a special edition to fashion. In this moment, one man had
turned fashion into an event worth reporting on. This event marked the beginning of fashion
truly becoming a part of everyday life for many people of the day.

The Mercure Galant’s founder, Donneau de Vise, was the first journalist to write about the
concepts that are the basic tenants of fashion today. He also introduced the fashion seasons to the
world. The fashion special edition or “extraordinare” in the Mercure Galant was not just a first in
subject matter, it boasted an additional first, its target audience. Before this edition, women had
not been targeted by the press. These bold moves are seen today as an ingenious marketing
technique that drove a budding industry into the mainstream.

Nineteenth Century Fashion Journalism

The idea of newspapers and magazines became more commonplace throughout the nineteenth
century, and women’s fashion periodicals began to take hold. Advances in technology meant that
magazines and books quickly expanded in number and selection. In many circles, fashion and
beauty were considered the duties of married woman as much as child rearing and keeping
house.

In the early 1800s, there were a few hundred magazines in existence including ones targeting
ladies. By the end of the century, they numbered in the thousands. One of the earliest English
fashion periodicals was the Gallery of Fashion, which was a fashion plate magazine published
from 1794 to 1803. Many of these popular magazines were conducted in some way under the
direction of a woman, though women did not formally edit them. A few such publications
are Records of Fashion, Court Elegance, La Belle Assemblée or Bell’s Court and Fashionable
Magazine, addressed particularly to ladies.

Interestingly enough, fashion was not just a women’s subject. Some fashion magazines such
as Gentleman’s Magazine of Fashions, Fancy Costumes, the Regimentals of the
Army and Splendidly Embellished, specifically targeted men. This serves to illustrate the high
impact fashion had on culture as a whole, rather than a particular gender.

Women’s periodicals, as an industry, were a profitable and growing business in the nineteenth
century. By mid-century, mass production increased the number of magazines being printed and
initiated the rise of specialty magazines. Some of these specialty magazines contained
information on cooking and traditional homemaking tasks, while others centered on religion,
education and equality. Equally, general magazines, such as Southern Women’s Magazine, which
included poetry, prose, domestic topics and fashion, were very popular.

Unintended Consequences
The thriving women’s magazine industry, which had started simply with a “special edition” also
had some positive unintended consequences. The rise of targeting women as readers opened the
door for women to take a proactive position as writers and business women. In fact, according
to Kristin H. Gerhard, Associate Professor and Librarian at Iowa State University
in International Women’s Periodicals: Late 18th Century to the Great Depression, “By the early
1900s, for the first time, large numbers of women’s magazines were being created and published
by women themselves. While women had long contributed to the women’s periodicals edited
and published by men, some women wanted more direct outlets for communication and
discussion.” Magazines like Ladies’ Magazine and Bibliothek der Frauenfrage were founded by
women.

Fashion Plates to Photos

In the early 1900s women’s fashion magazines took another step into the future by transitioning
from fashion plates to photographs. The early twentieth century ushered in an era of excess,
which was reflected in the glossy pages of many fashion magazines around the globe. By the
turn of the twentieth century, women had emerged from the home and became a growing part of
the work force.

Fashion as Serious News

In the early 1900s, many newspapers occasionally reported on what someone wore to an
important charity event or published photos of the newest Paris creations, but this never focused
on the business of fashion as we are familiar with today. One woman can take credit for making
fashion serious news in the 1930s and her name is Virginia Pope.
Pope was a journalist at the New York Times from 1925 to 1955, but introduced the news
industry to fashion by reporting on Paris haute couture in 1934. Not only did she bring fashion to
the serious business of news publication, she also brought theatrical fashion presentations to the
public. Pope produced these presentations under the sponsorship of the New York Times every
autumn.

The 1940s brought fashion journalism another step closer to what we are familiar with today. In
1943, the fashion publicist, Eleanor Lambert, started the trend of a New York fashion week.
During this yearly event, fashion editors were invited to capsule presentations of Lambert’s
clients collections. However, unlike today’s fashion events, the press week happened months
after the collections were available to the public.

At this point most of the fashion news and journalism was focused in New York, but the fashion
editors of several newspapers including the Chicago Tribune, Milwaukee Journal, Fort Worth
Star-Telegram and Buffalo News decided that seasonal fashion news should be brought to their
readership. In 1956, these newspapers started reporting on each season’s fashions as they were
available to the consumer. Their reporting approach was similar to the way sports news is
reported.

During the 1940s and 1950s, fashion journalism continued to be a rather dry and serious report to
the public. It covered details like dress and skirt lengths, jacket cuts and fabric types. It stuck to a
“hard news” type of reporting rather than a creative and colourful reporting style. Magazines
like Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue, which had started in the 19th century, continued to play a large
part in fashion journalism.

Fashion – A Page Turner for Ladies and Teens Alike

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s ladies and teenage girls alike turned to fashion magazines to
learn about the latest styles and trends. Magazines like Vogue, Harper’s
Bazaar, Cosmopolitan and Seventeen could be found on newsstands and bought through
subscriptions. Print was still the primary means of fashion reporting.

TV Becomes the New Frontier

In the 1980s, fashion journalism invaded a new frontier, TV. Up to this point, fashion was not
specifically a topic of discussion on television programmes, but this was all about to change with
shows like Entertainment Tonight (1981) and later, Access Hollywood. Eventually, this progress
to whole television networks dedicated to fashion and entertainment, and now just fashion. One
example of this is Fashion TV (1997).

Social Media, Blogging and Beyond

The advent of the internet in the early 1990s signalled a transformation for many aspects of life,
and fashion journalism was not exempt. It became a time when anyone could have an opinion
and write about it. Many who would never have their voice heard, due to prohibitive printing
costs and the need to gain a large readership, could now blog or vlog about fashion and have
their ideas shared around the world.

Traditional fashion publications also turned to the internet, placing some or all of their content in
the public domain, and in the 2000s digital only subscriptions became available. Today in the
2010s, we’ve come back to a time where a picture is worth a thousand words. Instagram, Twitter
and other social media outlets put photography first and text second. As communication in our
world grows and changes, so will fashion journalism. And as the demand for quality shareable
content continues to grow, it is possible that high end content will dictate the future of fashion
journalism.

2. Select from the article:

The names of Fashion Magazines-
The names of Fashion Writers-
The names of Fashion TV Shows-

3. What important events happened, in the history of fashion writing, during these
years?
XIXth century-
1900s-
1930-
1940s-
1943-
1956-
1960-1970s-
1981-
1997-
2000s-
2010s-

4. Write the summary of the article using your own words. (10-15 phrases)