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Babytalk (magazine)
Encyclopedia
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
, was launched in 1935 as a supplement to customers of a national cloth diaper
Diaper
A nappy or a diaper is a kind of pant that allows one to defecate or urinate on oneself discreetly. When diapers become soiled, they require changing; this process is often performed by a second person such as a parent or caregiver...
delivery service based in New Jersey. The free monthly publication aims to help new mothers trust their maternal instincts with "straight talk" from experts and real moms. Babytalk is part of The Parenting Group, which includes Parenting
Parenting (magazine)
Launched in 1987 by Time Inc., Parenting is a magazine for families published in the United States. In February 2009, the magazine became two separate, age-targeted editions: Parenting Early Years, for moms of infants, toddlers and preschoolers; and Parenting School Years, for moms with kids in...
magazine; the Parenting.com website; Working Mother magazine; Conceive; MomConnection, an online research tool; and a custom content unit.
With a controlled circulation of 2,000,000, Babytalk reaches more than 5.5 million readers a month through a combination of in-home subscriptions and distribution at baby retailers, maternity
Maternity
Maternity or motherhood is the social and legal acknowledgment of the parental relationship between a mother and her child.It is specially related with the protection of the baby and the mother within and after the childbirth.-See also:...
boutiques and OB/GYN offices across the country. Babytalk is currently distributed at Babies "R" Us, BuyBuyBaby, and Baby Depot, among others.
Many of the features in the magazine are reproduced on sister publication Parentings website, Parenting.com. The site also features a Pregnancy
Pregnancy
Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...
Planner, with fetal development photos, a customized newsletter and pregnancy info synchronized to a mother's due date; a Baby Namer tool, with thousands of name descriptions; a fertility
Fertility
Fertility is the natural capability of producing offsprings. As a measure, "fertility rate" is the number of children born per couple, person or population. Fertility differs from fecundity, which is defined as the potential for reproduction...
calculator, buying guides, blogs, along with resources for health & safety and child development
Child development
Child development stages describe theoretical milestones of child development. Many stage models of development have been proposed, used as working concepts and in some cases asserted as nativist theories....
.
In 2001, Babytalk became the first parenting magazine to feature a child with Down syndrome
Down syndrome
Down syndrome, or Down's syndrome, trisomy 21, is a chromosomal condition caused by the presence of all or part of an extra 21st chromosome. It is named after John Langdon Down, the British physician who described the syndrome in 1866. The condition was clinically described earlier in the 19th...
on the cover.
Recent history
Editor-in-chief Susan Kane led the successful repositioning of all three publications in the Babytalk franchise in 2005 – Babytalk, Babytalk Mom-to-Be, and Babytalk First Months. Under Kane's leadership, Babytalk garnered several industry awards, including a 2005 ASMEAmerican Society of Magazine Editors
The American Society of Magazine Editors is an industry trade group for editors of magazines published in the United States. The group advocates on behalf of member organizations with respect to First Amendment issues, and serves as a networking hub for editors and other industry employees...
National Magazine Award
National Magazine Award
The National Magazine Awards are a series of US awards that honor excellence in the magazine industry. They are administered by the American Society of Magazine Editors and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in New York City...
win in the Personal Service category for an article on breastfeeding
Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding is the feeding of an infant or young child with breast milk directly from female human breasts rather than from a baby bottle or other container. Babies have a sucking reflex that enables them to suck and swallow milk. It is recommended that mothers breastfeed for six months or...
.
Beginning in 2005, Babytalk has hosted "World's Biggest Playgroup
Playgroup
Playgroup may refer to:* Pre-school playgroup, a kind of pre-school care*Playgroup , a British dance act*Playgroup , arts and entertainment events in England...
" gatherings across the country. Aimed at new moms and their babies, this popular event features live kids' entertainment, music classes, valet stroller
Stroller
Stroller may refer to:*A form of baby transport*Stroller , men's daytime semiformal wear*Stroller , showjumping champion...
parking, raffles, giveaways, and photo opportunities. In the past, the event has taken place in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, and Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
.
The magazine encountered some controversy in 2006 when the August issue depicted a breastfeeding baby on the cover. An Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
article on public reaction to the image sparked hundreds of newspaper articles and TV segments highlighting the challenges that women face when attempting to breastfeed—along with more than 8,000 letters applauding the decision to feature a nursing mom on the cover of a national magazine.
Babytalk also partnered with Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
on its annual Cover Contest for several years. In 2006, viewers voted online to choose the winner, Abigail Goldman of Cherry Hill, NJ, who appeared on the cover of the October 2006 issue of Babytalk and received a $5,000 shopping spree at Babies"R"Us.
In March 2007, Time Inc.
Time Inc.
Time Inc. is a subsidiary of the media conglomerate Time Warner, the company formed by the 1990 merger of the original Time Inc. and Warner Communications. It publishes 130 magazines, most notably its namesake, Time...
sold 18 of its magazines to the Sweden-based Bonnier Group, including Babytalk magazine. Time Inc.'s Parenting Group and Time4 Media titles have combined with Bonnier's U.S. magazine partner, World Publications, to form a new company called Bonnier Corporation.
Ana Connery was named editor of Babytalk in 2009, and was promoted to director of The Parenting Group's print content operations in September 2010.