SCUBA magazine review

[jtkkym]

My LDS told me that do trust the SCUBA magazine's review because they are biased. They get paid to do it. I'm not sure if he was telling me because he wanted sell what he carry or what. Does anyone know?

[greenmoray]

It's been discussed on other forums before (scubading.com and scubaboard.com). IMO, I don't think they are biased but see their findings clear and informative.

[navyhmc]

That's been the same thing that was said about Skin Diver Magazine from it's earliest inceptions. I can't say if it's true or not. I have seen some of the "You have got to be kidding me!" things that they loved and you never see because they flopped and I have seen things that were state of the art and boosted the sport up a notch that they hated. Conversely, I have seen them call the flop a flop and the hit a hit. So it's hard to say.

The fact that there is a lot of advertising for the same thing they are evaluating is probably the biggest factor in the bias calling. But, the fact remains if you have a new product, you need to advertise in the right groupd and if it's dive gear, you advertise in dive magazines.

[tarheeldiver]

I would rather get varied opinions from Subatoys forum

[scootermcfly]

I think everything is baised in some form or another and that magazines provide some means of a starting point for research and then doing your own research is just as important.

Scooter McFly

[GDiver]

I like reading SCUBA magazine just for information and to see some of the new toys out there. I just gloss over reviews of items that are WAY out of my price range.

[fireflock]

Beware if this person has a pattern of bad-mouthing things that are not from his shop (gear, instruction, trips, etc...). That's a sign of a bad LDS.

Overall, I think the scubadiving reviews do a decent job. I don't think they are biased, and certainly not by ad dollars. When they use test divers for subjective reviews (comfort, fit, etc..) you might find that your preferences are different from theirs. When you test regs on the ANSI machine, for example, I'm not sure where the bias can show up (but I've heard theories).

People who bad-mouth everything usually have run out of legitimate ways to promote their stuff.

Rich

[Damselfish]

Most everything is biased in some way - that includes magazines, LDSs, and people posting on dive forums. Sometimes the bias is slight or innocent and sometimes not. The key is to look at many sources and try and figure out what the truth is for you.

I'd say your LDS is correct in saying some of the stuff you see in certain dive mags is biased. Whether he is himself, can't really say from that.

[MSilvia]

Originally Posted by fireflock

I don't think they are biased, and certainly not by ad dollars.

So... you think that although BrandX pays a boatload of money to them every month for 4 different adverts including a 2 page spread, they aren't going to shy away from reporting that their test divers thought BrandX gear stunk like a fishmarket dumpster?

Is that because you don't think it matters to their advertisers if they publish content that makes potential customers shy away from their wares despite the money they spend there trying to attract customers, or because you don't think the magazine publishers care about retaining repeat advertising business?

Wouldn't it be more prudent for their business if they simply emphasized any positive comments and played down the negatives? After all, who would know?

[fireflock]

I think the folks at ScubaDiving magazine saw what happened to mags like SkinDiver and have made a real attempt to be more like consumer reports than a mag that publishes ads disguised as reviews.

ScubaPro was BrandX for a while. They were not happy with the way some of their stuff was portrayed in the tests and stopped submitting gear to be included in the reviews. I think they stopped buying ads too.

Mags care about both getting ads _and_ raising circulation. It's in their best interest to balance the two. Loose your reputation as a trusted source of info and your circulation dies.

Sure, there are things I wish they would do differently...but I think the idea of them as an advertiser controlled puppet is overblown. I won't say that for all scuba mags though.

Enjoy the popcorn?

Rich