BBC Confused About State of U.S. Magazine Market

Aren't eggheads supposed to be, you know, smart? So why do they keep launching new science magazines into a U.S. magazine market that's far from healthy? Do they know something we don't?

First it was Bonnier Corp. introducing Science Illustrated in December, and now the BBC is lining up a new science-and-history title, BBC Knowledge, to debut in August.

Never mind that ad spending is going down the tubes and the price of paper will leap by more than 25 percent this year. Andy Benham, the BBC's publishing director, says "the concept researched very favorably," possibly because we Yanks just can't get enough of seeing "color" and "humor" spelled with a "u": "While the content will feed American interests, the Britishness and BBC-ness of the magazine are seen as being key assets, offering consumers a fresh alternative to what is currently on the market," Benham says in a release.

BBC Knowledge will be a 100-page bimonthly with a cover price of $5.99. Sally Palmer, former deputy editor of Focus, will be its editor.