Time Magazine's American sensibility

Like a number of previous missteps on the editorial front, some Time readers are noticing something striking about this week's American edition of the magazine — in short, that the U.S. edition generally favours vapid fluff-pieces over serious journalism:

While readers in Asia, Europe, and the South Pacific—really, the rest of the Time-reading world—confront a serious profile about Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti and his role in the euro crisis, Americans are in for a special treat: a cover story called “The Surprising Science of Animal Friendships*.” (The asterisk leads to a footnote at the bottom of the cover that says, “BFFs are not just for humans anymore.”) With not one but two adorable dogs against a hot-pink background, this week’s Time really signifies the editors’ staunch commitment to serious, hard-hitting journalism, even if it means risking unpopularity.

 Time has done this before, remember?