So Long, Mothering

I was an avid subscriber to Mothering Magazine long before I was a mama. I've been receiving and reading it for more than 8 years. It had wonderful, well cited articles on natural parenting topics - vaccine decisions, home birth, alternative medicine, family-friendly recipes, nursing, family beds,cloth diapers. It had lovely pictures of mamas nursing their babies. It had ads for products about which I might never have known if not for Mothering.
It was an important outlier in the parenting media - a voice of calm, questioning, and care. I gave several gift subscriptions including one to my Mom's new OB office in 2007 when she opened. I passed on copies to other mamas and hope that they were read and passed on again.
Sadly, I received my last copy this morning. Mothering's last print issue was the Nov./Dec. 2010 issue. Peggy O'mara posted an editorial on February 15, 2011 announcing, "In the last few weeks it has become obvious that we must cease publication of the print magazine. . . And with the March–April edition, after 35 years, we will cease publishing Mothering magazine altogether. We are now a Web-only company." She cites declining subscriptions and advertising as major issues that faced the magazine.
The comments there and on the mothering.com discussion boards reflect both a deep disappointment that the magazine will no longer exist as a much needed resource for parents bombarded with poor information from other media outlets as well as a feeling of betrayal at the way the company has handled the change.

While there was purportedly an email sent to subscribers before the February 15 public announcement, there are many (including me) who did not receive it. In fact, in reading the comments on mothering and its discussion boards and Facebook page, not one person has yet claimed to have received this communication. According to posters the company actively solicited and sold subscriptions and advertising for the magazine until the day before they announced the cessation of publishing. They are offering subscribers fulfillment of subscriptions through another magazine, Natural Life. Also according to commenters, advertisers are not receiving refunds but are being offered discounts on additional advertisements on the website. If the shock of having your money taken is not enough, loyal devotees (and anyone else with $25 to burn) are being offered the chance to donate money to help the company go web-only.
I am certainly sad that I will no longer get the magazine or be able to share it with others, but I am also disappointed in the way that the change has taken place and the disregard the company has shown subscribers and advertisers alike.