The XX Factor

Levi Johnston Snags a Byline; J-School Grads Die A Little Inside

The media, it’s not doing so well . Maybe you’ve heard? The Audit Bureau of Circulations released their semiannual report on magazine figures yesterday , and though subscriptions held steady, there were still plenty of unappetizing statistics to pain a glossy mag devotee’s heart. Single-sale magazine copies fell 12.4 percent from the previous year and 24 of the top 25 newsstand titles reported declines. The exception: Real Simple . Apparently out-of-work folks will pay a few bucks for daytime craft ideas and an organic bellini recipe.

Judging from the number of B-list celebs who snagged highly sought-after media jobs this week, it seems like the favored editorial solution to such trying times may be: Don’t merely write about undeserving famous people, hire them to work for you. NBC received much-warranted criticism when they announced Jenna Bush Hager as their new Today Show correspondent this past Sunday. What’s worse, Bush Hager herself didn’t seem all that happy about the gig. Her take on her hire seems more apt for the poor soul passed over for the position, who, demoralized about the nepotistic state of journalism, resigns herself to filling out law school applications:

“It wasn’t something I’d always dreamed to do, but I think one of the most important things in life is to be open-minded and to be open-minded for change.”

Meanwhile, Kim Kardashian landed a contributing editorship at OK magazine, and yesterday Gawker pointed out that the upcoming issue of Vanity Fair contains a piece penned by Levi Johnston titled “Me and Sarah Palin.” (No joke.)

Sigh.

Every time Levi Johnston gets a grammatically incorrect cover story, a J-school grad loses her wings.

Photograph by Getty Images.