An exclusive look into the editorial mission of Military & Aerospace Electronics (and a renewal reminder)

By Ernesto Burden
By Ernesto Burden, Publisher -

If you read Military & Aerospace Electronics - the print or digital edition of the magazine - you know what a special experience that is, and how distinct an experience it is from reading the website. The rest of the post is going to be an elaboration on the reasons why Military & Aerospace Magazine is so important, and therefore, why you ought not to delay in renewing your (free!) subscription. And while I think what I'm about to say is interesting and worth your consideration, if you're a cut-to-the-chase absolutist, just click here and take a minute to renew your subscription. Trust me, you would have been convinced had you kept reading. Everyone who's interested in a deeper look into the soul of Military & Aerospace Electronics, read on.

Last month, I met with the editors of Military & Aerospace Electronics for a couple of days of deep discussion about where they envisioned taking this magazine in the year to come. We started the meetings with a discussion of the magazine's core values. I'll tell you, no group of editors could have been more passionate about a topic than ours were about this. Here are the guts of what they said:
  • Our editorial content serves you, the reader, first
  • We will strive to understand you, our readers, well enough so that every piece of content we publish will be useful to you, and we will add value to every piece of content we publish
  • In order to achieve these goals, we don't sell editorial space; there's a clear distinction between advertising and editorial content in our magazine (at the end of the day, of course, this fundamental integrity makes our publications more effective vehicles for advertising, as well)
But what does it mean to put the reader first, or to add value to each piece of content we publish? What do these points all mean in terms of real world actions and results? They mean our editors wake up every day thinking about how to:
  • Save you time and energy
  • Provide data that can help your business run better
  • Provide insights that will give you a strategic advantage over competitors
  • Provide tools to improve your work and that of your employees
We took those core ideas and used them as lens through which we viewed all of our strategic initiatives in the coming year - including a very important one, the addition of a new editorial position in the Aerospace & Defense Group. In mid-October we hired Skyler Frink, who joined John Keller and Courtney Howard on our editorial team. Skyler is a human face on a big idea - that we're going to keep growing the value of Military & Aerospace Electronics for you - in print, on the web, email newsletters, mobile apps, video blogs, social media and more.

But looking at that cool list of media channels by which we can get you our content brings me back to the initial proposition and the question implicit therein. Why should you hurry to renew your print subscription?

Our website and digital products provide you critical, time-sensitive data anytime and anywhere, and you need that timely information to make quick decisions in an evolving market. But that's a lot of data to synthesize into long-term thinking and strategy.

Our print (and digital edition) magazine provides you that utility: it's the "best of" section of our content, a place to dive deep and think even more deeply. Need to know that you've covered the most essential news of the month, and need that packaged in, as our editor in chief, John Keller says, "a portable wireless product with an intuitive graphic interface"?

That's the print edition, and for all intents and purposes, the digital edition as you can read it on your iPad via standard digital edition download or our custom iPad app.

So there you have it - just as our editors relish saving you time and energy and improving your business with the content they create, I hope I can do the same for you with this reminder. We know you value the content, and we'll help you out by reminding you to renew as needed, it'll save you time if you take a minute to fill out this form on the web. Here's the link: http://www.omeda.com/cgi-win/mae.cgi?login&p=blogrenew

And while you're waiting for your next issue, please feel free to take a minute and drop any of our editors, or me, a note about how we can do even better in our mission to help you do better in yours.

Ernesto Burden is the publisher of Military & Aerospace Electronics and Avionics Intelligence. He can be reached at ernestob@pennwell.com and on Twitter @ aero_ernesto.

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May 24, 2012

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High-performance embedded computing (HPEC) gaining market traction, but its definition remains elusive

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Continuing the conversation

May 7, 2012

Lockheed Martin experimental stealth surface vessel to be scrapped after yielding valuable technology

May 3, 2012

Air Force competes in National Collegiate Cyber Defense competition

April 30, 2012

Will Intel 3rd Generation Intel Core processor make a big splash in embedded computing applications?

April 27, 2012

The $114 million mistake

April 25, 2012

Iran under attack once again

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High-performance computing for rugged mobile military applications is becoming a hot design issue

April 18, 2012

Is the U.S. getting ready for conflict?

April 16, 2012

Historic obsession about the Titanic sinking 100 years ago wipes Bread and Roses strike from popular memory

April 12, 2012

The future of UAV technology aims high

April 3, 2012

Conference combo

March 30, 2012

We can thank a self-absorbed Congress for hurting national defense if deep automatic defense cuts happen

March 28, 2012

Securing the military network

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The defense industry may be adjusting to a new age of financial austerity

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What's up with all the anti-tamper technology?

March 5, 2012

Effects of 2013 DOD budget cuts already being felt with program cancellations

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February 25, 2012

The Aerospace & Defense Bloggers

Ernesto Burden is the publisher of PennWell’s Aerospace & Defense Media Group, including Military & Aerospace Electronics, Avionics Intelligence and Avionics Europe.  He’s a father of four, a runner, and an avid digital media enthusiast with a deep background in the intersection of media publishing, digital technology, and social media. He can be reached at ernestob@pennwell.com and on Twitter @aero_ernesto.

John Keller is editor-in-chief of Military & Aerospace Electronics magazine, which provides extensive coverage and analysis of enabling electronic and optoelectronic technologies in military, space, and commercial aviation applications. A member of the Military & Aerospace Electronics staff since the magazine's founding in 1989, Mr. Keller took over as chief editor in 1995.

Skyler Frink is an Assistant Editor of Military & Aerospace Electronics and Avionics Intelligence. Skyler graduated Cum Laude from the University of New Hampshire with a BA in Journalism and a Minor in Information Technology in 2011. He has contributed to many different publications both online and in print throughout his career as a Journalist. Skyler can be reached skylerf@pennwell.com.

Courtney E. Howard, as executive editor, enjoys writing about all things electronics and avionics in PennWell’s burgeoning Aerospace and Defense Group, which encompasses Military & Aerospace Electronics, Avionics Intelligence, the Avionics Europe conference, and much more. She’s also a self-proclaimed social-media maven, mil-aero nerd, and avid avionics geek. Connect with Courtney at Courtney@Pennwell.com, @coho on Twitter, and on LinkedIn.

Mil & Aero Magazine

May 2012
Volume 23, Issue 5