Morris Ceases Publication of Saltwater Bi-Monthly, Announces New Print and Online Publications

Morris Communications, which publishes both American Angler and Saltwater Fly Fishing magazines, announced yesterday that they will cease publication of their bi-monthly saltwater print magazine and reintroduce that content in new forms. Plans are in the works for an annual publication for saltwater fly fishers, along with an entirely new Web site under the domain SaltwaterFlyFishing.com. Additionally, American Angler will expand its coverage of saltwater fly fishing.
Steve Walburn, who has served as editor of Saltwater Fly Fishing and who is now general manager of Morris’s sporting group, spoke to us yesterday and sees great opportunity in changing the way saltwater content is presented: “It gives us a repository for 12-13 years of print publishing history, plus searchable archives, a chance to be more video-intensive, and a new channel for expert bloggers, contributors and guides. The saltwater Web site will change dramatically and become much more than just a reflection of a print product, while the annual will give us a chance to address the needs of the dedicated saltwater fly fisher. And of course I’m also excited about the redesign of American Angler in January 2008.”
Read the extended entry for the full press release.

MCC Magazines, LLC Combines Two Fly-Fishing Titles
Augusta, Ga. (Sept. 13, 2007)— Saltwater Fly Fishing magazine, an independent, bi-monthly title, will merge with its sister publication, American Angler, to create an expanded version of American Angler magazine. The announcement was made today by Carl W. Mullins, director of MCC Magazines, LLC.
The first issue of a freshly redesigned American Angler will hit the newsstands in December, featuring significantly expanded content served to more than 40,000 hard-core fly fishers. While the magazine’s focus will continue to be on detailed instructional content, the additional space will allow for a more diverse mix of feature stories and a more visually compelling design.
“This is the perfect way for us to create a more comprehensive American Angler while continuing to serve the increasing number of anglers who fly fish in both fresh and salt water,” said Mullins.
October will be the final issue of Saltwater Fly Fishing. Current Saltwater Fly Fishing subscribers will receive a redesigned American Angler that includes increased saltwater fly fishing content in addition to the full breadth of outstanding coverage of freshwater fly fishing.
MCC Magazines also will publish an American Angler “Saltwater Fly Fishing Annual,” which will deliver to advertisers an audience of more than 30,000 readers composed of current subscribers to Saltwater Fly Fishing, as well as American Angler, Fly Tyer and Gray’s Sporting Journal readers who live in coastal markets.
In addition to its continuing print coverage of saltwater fly fishing, MCC Magazines will also expand its content online with the launch of SaltwaterFlyFishing.com, which it recently acquired.
“The increasing importance of Internet research to saltwater anglers dictates that we place more emphasis on electronic delivery of our content,” said Morris Sporting Group general manager Steve Walburn. “In addition to creating deep online archives of material from all our titles, the merger will allow us to produce more original content for our Web sites, such as instructional videos, destination reports, and development of community groups.”
American Angler is published by Morris Magazines, LLC, a division of Morris Communications Co., LLC.
Morris Communications Company, LLC, is a privately held media company with diversified holdings that include newspaper publishing, visitor-guide publishing, outdoor advertising, magazine publishing, radio broadcasting, book publishing and distribution, and online services. For more information, visit www.morris.com.
Contact: Steve Walburn
Ph: 706.836.3418
Email: [email protected]