Yahoo yesterday announced that it's bought Tumblr for $1.1 billion to communicate to millennials cool, hip, relevant, and that it understands what GIFs are. But back in the early ages of the dot com-era, the company was saying that through a monthly publication called Yahoo Internet Life Magazine.
From 1995-2002, Yahoo's glossy was published by Ziff Davis, which licensed the Yahoo name. The mag featured regular columns from Roger Ebert, and get this—critical reviews of not just gadgets but also websites. Just look at some of the covers. With hallmark names and phrases of the 90s like Monica Lewinsky, Senifeld, e-mail, and web cam revolution, it's an incredible picture of the early years of the internet as a democratic concept. Hey, maybe if Yahoo was cool in the 90s, it can be cool again 20 years later. [BuzzFeed]
DISCUSSION
Yahoo! was never truly cool. Even in those days, there was something just a little tone-deaf about their approach, and this magazine is a good example.
Someone got me a subscription because they knew I was "into computers." I frankly can't remember a single notable article I read. Most of the issues I just thumbed through and tossed aside.
If it seems to Millennial eyes to be a transparent attempt to cash in on the burgeoning popularity of the interweb, well, that's exactly how it seemed back then.