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August 28, 2012updated 28 Sep 2012 1:20pm

Hislop: Eye success down to investment in journalism

By Richard Wilson

Private Eye editor Ian Hislop has put the magazine's continuing sales success down to its ongoing investment in investigative journalism.

Private Eye remains top-sellingg magazine in the news and current affairs sector after reporting a 9.6 per cent sales increase to 226,047 in the first half of 2012, according to ABC figures.

Hislop told Press Gazette that while the Leveson Inquiry and Queen's Jubilee helped bolster sales, the real driver was the magazine 'trying to buck the trend and do investigative journalism, rather than say it is expensive and nobody is interested, because I think they are".

 

'It's the old formula,'he said. 'The magazine has got to be funny and it has to tell you stuff that you don't know – if I can get those two things right then I think the readers will come.'

Hislop said he had also sacrificed an advertising page for editorial. 'These are small changes but I think they give you slightly more room,'he said.

'We had a great year last year with our 50th anniversary and I think that effect kicks on.

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'There was a great deal of interest in the magazine which helped raise its profile, and I also think a lot of people thought there he is banging on about it on television, so perhaps we should go buy it and see if it is any good.'

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