Sports Afield to Cease Publication
Wed Apr 17, 8:24 PM ET
LOS ANGELES - Outdoor magazine Sports Afield will cease publication this spring, the victim of one of the worst advertising recessions in years.
The popular hunting and outdoor sports publication will end its 115-year run with its June 2002 issue.
"The two-year-long recession, compounded by the events of last fall, have limited the growth in advertising pages needed to see us through the relaunch process that Sports Afield has been undergoing," said Ken Elliott, chief operating officer.
During its history, Sports Afield was nominated for more national magazine awards than any other outdoor title.
The magazine has a circulation of about 459,000, according to Bacon's Magazine Directory.
Originally owned by Hearst Corp., Sports Afield was bought by publisher Robert Petersen in January 2000.
Petersen, the former publisher of Motor Trend, Hot Rod and Guns & Ammo magazines, relocated Sports Afield to Los Angeles from New York and began refocusing it on its traditional hunting and outdoor sports roots.
The magazine had marked Petersen's return to the publishing world after he sold his firm, Petersen Publishing Co. to Willis Stein & Partners in 1996.
Sports Afield to cease publication