This podcast episode delves into the critical role women have played in shaping the magazine industry through design, editorial leadership, and cultural influence. While season one spotlighted individual designers, this episode zooms out to explore the broader impact women have had on magazine evolution—from early European publications to today’s digital formats. It traces how magazines shifted from reinforcing traditional gender roles to becoming empowering platforms, thanks to figures like Sarah Josepha Hale, Cipe Pineles, Bea Feitler, and Ruth Ansel, who revolutionized both visual style and editorial voice. The episode also highlights the contributions of Black women in publishing, who created their own magazines to amplify underrepresented voices and foster community. Today, designers like Jessica Walsh, Gail Bichler, and Gail Anderson continue this legacy, using bold visuals and innovative technology to push boundaries and expand representation. Through storytelling, activism, and artistry, women have transformed magazines into platforms for cultural commentary and social change—proving that their creativity and leadership are essential to the industry’s past, present, and future.

TIMELINE

1663-1668 - First magazine-like publication (Erbauliche Monaths-Unterredungen)

1693 - First magazine for women created (Athenian Mercury)

1731 - Term “Magazine” first used in the The Gentleman's Magazine

1770 - The Lady’s Magazine began

1830 - Godey’s Lady’s Book, an American magazine for women, was started by a man named Louis A. Godey

1832-1852 - The Ladies’ Cabinet was created and sold

1855 - Photolithography is invented

1870-1927 - The Woman’s Journal, which would eventually merge with The Woman Citizen, was

released in Boston

1885 - Good Housekeeping first published

1891-1894 - Ringwood’s Afro-American Journal of Fashion Magazines were published and distributed

1899 - The Saturday Evening Post printed the first full-page illustrated cover

1916-1925 - Half-Century Magazine was created and distributed

1920 - Women were granted the right to vote

1932-1935 - Cipe Pineless works as assistant art director for Conde Nast

1945 - Ebony Magazine was first published

1954 - Dorothy Dandridge was the first black woman on a mainstream magazine cover

1961 - Bea Feitler is hired at Harper’s Bazaar

1965 - Bea Feitler and Ruth Ansel release famous cover of Jean Shrimpton for Harper's Bazaar

1974 - Ruth Ansel becomes the first female art director and the New York Times Magazine

REFERENCES

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Burkhalter, N. (1996). Women’s magazines and the suffrage movement: Did they help or hinder the cause? Journal of American Culture, 19(2), 13–24. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1542-734x.1996.1902_13.x

Clair, C. (1969). A chronology of printing. Weidenfeld & Nicolson.

Ed.D., G. M. (2024, March 1). Women’s History Month: The Life of Dorothy Dandridge. Benicia Magazine. https://www.beniciamagazine.com/womens-history-month-the-life-of-dorothy-dandridge/

Ellis, E., Golden, C. P., & Fripp, C. B. (2005). Cipe Pineles: Two remembrances. RIT Cary Graphic Arts Press.

Eye Magazine. (n.d.). Eye Magazine. Retrieved July 20, 2025, from https://www.eyemagazine.com/feature/article/reputations-gail-bichler

Ferguson, M. (1983). Forever feminine: Women’s magazines and the cult of femininity. Heinemann Educational Books.

Forster, L. (2015). Magazine movements: Women’s culture, feminisms and media form. Bloomsbury Publishing USA.

history of publishing. (n.d.). Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved July 20, 2025, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/publishing/additional-info

McCracken, E. (1993). Decoding Women’s Magazines: From mademoiselle to Ms.

Osei-Hwere, E., & Osei-Hwere, P. (n.d.). History of magazine publishing. Media Communication, Convergence and Literacy. Retrieved July 20, 2025, from https://oer.pressbooks.pub/mediacommunication/chapter/history-of-magazine-publishing/

Rooks, N. M. (2004). Ladies’ pages: African American women’s magazines and the culture that made them. Rutgers University Press.

Sperandio, A. T., & Bouadana, S. (2010). Ruth Ansel: art direction. Creative Review (London, England), 30(5), 28–36.

The Luupe. (n.d.). Jessica Walsh on Building Her Own Design Studio and Breaking Clichés. Retrieved July 20, 2025, from https://studio.theluupe.com/blog/jessica-walsh-on-building-her-own-design-studio-and-breaking-cliches

Thomson, E. M. (1994). Early Graphic Design Periodicals in America. Journal of Design History, 7(2), 113–126. https://doi.org/10.1093/jdh/7.2.113