Business travel
Cover art
The mile-high club
Feb 6th 2012, 11:18 by N.B. | WASHINGTON, D.C.
GULLIVER isn't normally prone to posting cover images from publications other than The Economist, but last week's Bloomberg Businessweek effort deserves comment. Also, Josh Tyrangiel, the magazine's editor, says the cover is a tribute to "Marvin Gaye, Airplane, and vintage Economist" (the second cover here is probably the one he was thinking about).
Phwoar! In case you don't get it, or can't see the image due to some sort of naughty-content blocker, Businessweek's cover shows two aeroplanes, one Continental-branded and one United, "getting it on". It's quite clever, if a bit fratty. The cover story isn't bad either. But the Atlantic Wire takes readers where they most want to go: inside the design process that led to this image. Here's how Richard Turley, Businessweek's creative director, explained it:
Generally speaking it's just me and Josh Tyrangiel, the editor. We're generally very informal. I don't know if you know the geography of the office but we sit literally opposite each other and that enables us to talk and not to have meetings. The cover conversations happen quite quickly. Sometimes that's a product of our proximity. Sometimes we just email a bit and say something and come up with an idea. Josh comes up with a lot of the cover ideas. It was Josh who said, "How about planes having sex for the cover?" And I was like "YES."
Now you know. The Economist called the United-Continental merger "less exciting than it sounds", which is almost too good to be true. I can only assume our follow-up will say the merger is also less exciting than Businessweek makes it look. Gawker's Ryan Tate is a bit more critical of Businessweek's design.
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Readers' comments
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Sex sells...
This entire post, and all the comments, has made me happier and more giddy than I normally find myself while on The Economist site. And truthfully, around both travel and science I get silly. But this is too good. =) Well played, all of you.
Although Businessweek's cover image is a bit infantile and stereotypical (Sex allusion? Really? How imaginative.), I do like the fact that they decided to step a bit out of the ordinary.
Same with their layout for the story "Rule By Song" in the same issue. I do not like the looks of it, but I appreciate the effort to bring something different to the newspaper.
However, I cannot agree with Gulliver that the cover story "isn't bad either". It is a very interesting article on intricacies of airline mergers but does not give the answer to the question in headline - "is it a love built to last". Also, it describes little of Continental and United's "undeniable corporate chemistry".
k.
Oddly enough, those two 737s couldn't "mate" as United had disposed of all of that type before the merger - only to take on Continental's - all of whose are equipped with winglets........
I think the United one should be on top, the Continental one on it's back....
a lot of mess to clean up after they both are done with it
"Facebook's IPO: Friends with Benefits"
Just goes to highlight how humanity still can't stop thinking about reproduction in almost everything it does, no matter how irrelevant the issue is to the topic at hand! We've got a long ways to go before we're anything more than upright monkeys with less hair than most ;). Not saying this is a bad thing mind :).
They obviously can't be serious, about the emerging "fornication" process of the two airlines!
Unfortunately, those of us who are long time Continental flyers think the image is reversed....
United has been raped! Conair takeover.
A
Actually, this Newsweek cover reminds me of an Economist cover a few years ago with the title "The Trouble With Mergers." Could is be Economist inspired?
Clearly derivative, and not as thoughtful. At the least the camels looked like they were enjoying themselves.
Another article is touted on the front page, referencing "Friends with Benefits"!
Was the headline writer completely randy/horny the day the front page was put together?! Sheesh!
Imagine what their baby would look like?
A "Unitental" 787 perhaps?