periscope
Newsweek, Dec. 23, 2002

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A Smart(-Alecky) Read
By Mary Carmichael

Ah, college. Where else but in lectures and late-night bull sessions could you spend hours pondering the mysteries of the universe, the wonders of civilization, the truth about Pop Rocks and soda? Well, there's mental_floss. The year-old magazine is a lot like that professor of yours who peppered his tests with raunchy jokes: it makes learning fun. The current issue, for instance, reveals that "unlike people," stars get hotter as they age. Oh, and Pop Rocks and soda won't kill you.

The original five mental_floss staffers had no journalistic experience, except for one kid who'd worked on his high-school newspaper. Now they run a bi-monthly with 10,000 subscribers and a newsstand presence of 50,000 copies. Sixty percent of those get sold, an almost unheard-of statistic for new magazines. Recently the staff has inked deals for a book series, a board game, radio spots and a syndicated column. "We haven't spent a dime on marketing," says cofounder Will Pearson. "We still don't know why it's worked so well." Maybe it has something to do with the magazine's breezy, Maxim-style blurbs, or its advisory board, stocked with influential journalists who have spread the word. Or it could be the gimmicks, like that title ("God, we thought of some awful names at first," says Pearson) or the tag line: "Feel smart again." Either way, it's clear the mental_floss folks have been reading their own magazine.

Copyright © 2002 Newsweek