History lovers across the country have had mixed reactions to the sudden rebranding of the esteemed magazine, The Beaver.
The publication will change its name to Canada’s Historythis April in part due to the sexual connotation of its previous title.
This Winnipeg-based publication, which has been around for 90 years, was originally a monthly periodical for the Hudson’s Bay Company. It now has more than 50,000 subscribers.
The Beaver’s parent company, Canada’s National History Society, decided to change the magazine’s name after it found sales were decreasing, especially among women and adults under 45.
A spokesperson told various publications that the magazine has also been struggling to reach its target audience on the Internet.
Apparently many stumble upon The Beaver’s website when searching for online material of a different kind.
Gerhard Ens, who teaches Canadian history at the University of Alberta, said rebranding The Beavermight not be a bad idea. He told the Charlatanvia e-mail that the magazine probably wanted to be clearer about its subject matter.
“I seriously doubt that the main reason for the proposed name change was the supposed ‘sexual innuendo’ associated with the name. I suspect the real reason for the name change has more to do with a general rebranding of the magazine to erase any connection to its older and more regional (the north) and thematic (fur trade) foci.”
Meanwhile Paul Litt, director of the public history program at Carleton, wrote an e-mail in which he reacted more viscerally, calling the name change “sad” and “ridiculous.”
“Changing the name would be an admission that the scurrilous slang of sniggering adolescents is more influential than the country’s history.”
Similarly, Jill St. Germain, a history professor at Carleton, wrote an e-mail calling the magazine’s rebranding “exasperating.” She said she understands the need for change based on public opinion but believes the new name is unlikely to affect the magazine’s readership all that much.
“The audience that is interested in the popularization of Canadian history, which The Beaver does so well, would read it no matter what the title. I can hardly imagine that something called Canada’s Historyis going to draw in the uninitiated. If they’re going to change the name, I would go with something a little more exciting.”
The magazine will soon be able to gauge whether changing its name was worth the risk. The Beaverwill be extinct once the February/March 2010 issues come off the stands, but its contents will live on.
How do Carleton students feel about the name change?
“The title is really important because it is the first thing that you see in a magazine," said Caitlin Wieja, a first-year communications student. "However we should not be influenced by the media’s spin of what a beaver is — obviously if it’s Canadian the beaver is significant because it is a Canadian icon."
“I feel like a sexual innuendo is a ridiculous reason to change the name of something, especially a history magazine that has been established for ninety years," said Chelsea Osesky, a first-year journalism student. "It has nothing to do with anything sexual. Are we going to change the name of the beaver, the actual animal because it is a sexual innuendo?"
“The Beaver should keep its name," said Jessica Lee, a first-year humanities student. "Playing on the sexual innuendo [. . .] that will attract a younger audience to buy it, which will in fact solve their problem.”