Magazine media constitutes a larger portion of the publishing industry than books. Magazines also have an important journalistic function, along with playing a role in suggesting various lifestyles.
However, there has been very little research concerning magazines carried out in Japan. Nevertheless, there were a number of magazine research projects carried out in the 1990's that deserve recognition. This paper introduces and analyzes magazine research carried out in the 1990's based on a magazine's philosophy (concepts, frequency, size, media characteristics, and mode), the current situation of magazines (overall image, trends in types and circulation, women magazines, and magazine advertisements), along with an analysis of magazine contents and magazine journalism.
