The Great Outdoors. The New York Times has introduced a new column dedicated to emphasizing the natural world over technical skills. James Gorman, former story
editor for the New York Times Magazine and editor of the Times' "Circuit" section, will opine about activities like kayaking, hiking and birding. We hope he also does a few
postmortems on whatever vermin the folks on "Survivor II" happen to be eating. The column, which will run on alternate Fridays, first appeared Feb. 16. (Diane McNulty,
212/556-5244.)
Back to School. PC Magazine heads into the ivory tower by striking a partnership with the College Television Network. The "First Looks"
section of the magazine, which offers reviews of hot technology products before they hit the market, is now also a television show broadcast to CTN's 1,700 college and university
locations. The two-minute segments are targeted at tech-savvy college kids ages 18 to 24. PC Magazine Associate Editor Jenn DeFeo hosts each show. CTN reaches more than 1.5
million viewers daily. (Gordon Plutsky, 212/503-5660.)
Joey Takes a Break. "The new voice for gay and bi youth" is going on hold after publishing only four issues last year. Joey magazine, which is to gay young
men what Seventeen is for teen-age girls, (meaning lots of articles on boy-bands and the latest shows on the WB Network) is taking time off while it seeks another round of
financing, says Editor Jerry C. Dunn. Plans to make changes to the magazine's look and feel may or may not happen, says Dunn. The magazine circulated to about 20,000 and is based
in Los Angeles. (Jerry C. Dunn, 888/550-5639.)
It's a Small (Transaction) World After All. The Web might not be the hotbed of commerce that investors had
hoped for (hence the continual downslide of the NASDAQ), but that's not to say that online transactions aren't the future of business. This month Transaction World launches
a four-color monthly based in Atlanta providing news and analysis on the evolving transaction-processing industry. Editorial content will address the wants and needs of
independent sales organizations and merchant service providers, the backbone of e-commerce. Also, special columns will allow readers to voice their opinions and share technology
and business advice. (Erika Smyth, 888/407-8355, ext. 4.)