You know, I think the most offensive thing possible is when a magazine has such a hard on about keeping their readership numbers up in a valuable demographic that, while they charge for their magazine, it’s actually quite hard to get them to stop sending the stupid piece of crap to people who actively loathe them.
Complex magazine is like this. I look at it and am actually offended in ways that pretty much only Creationist Times can match. But I am in the correct demographic — college to mid-thirties, urban area, and having both a degree and a well paying job. Otherwise, I think the presentation of the magazine makes my half of the species look like a bunch of jerks and furthermore makes me dislike urban areas.
This is not good. I mean, even the likes of Stuff or Maxim (Magazine, not Semiconductor) don’t bug me nearly as much.
The first time I called them, I was worried I had been subscribed against my will by some accident. I asked why they were sending me the magazine and they said that some company, who they declined to identify, had purchased me a subscription.
When I got another copy recently, I realized that they were trying to maintain their demographic for the advertisers and didn’t really care about pissing people off who don’t like their magazine.
I think I need to fill out the appropriate complaint form with the post office on this one.