By Morgan Passi

Today is a "sad day" for North Island Publishing Ltd. and a sad day for magazines.

After 21 years, North Island announced yesterday that the November/December issue of Masthead magazine will be its last. The recent financial crisis was the final nail in the coffin for the trade magazine that, according to North Island president Alexander Donald, "has not been financially viable for several years now."

MastheadOnline.com will also be closing, though its termination date hasn't been announced.

With a targeted print circulation of 2,800 and a website with 60,000+ page views per month, Masthead is highly respected within the industry. Its closure is especially tragic for us at the RRJ. Both publisher Doug Bennet ('87) and editor Marco Ursi ('06) are Review alumni.

Stay tuned for more details in early November, when the RRJ's Heather Li takes an in-depth look at what Masthead's closure means for magazines in Canada.