''Kiss'' (stylised as ''KISS'') was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

magazine aimed at a teenage market containing knowledge about adolescent matters such as fashion advice, confessions, features on teenage cultural icons, relationship advice and problem pages with solutions especially designed for teenage readers. Now known as KISS.ie, it is part of the ''

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'' publishing franchise of Michael O'Doherty. ''Kiss'' was launched on 31 October 2002 as the first of O'Doherty's solo business ventures. He had previously engaged in a number of co-ordinated business ventures in Ireland with his former business partner John Ryan; ''Kiss'' succeeded the co-owned establishments of '' Magill'' in 1997 and ''

'' in 1999 and preceded later titles such as the glossy monthly targeted at women in the age group of eighteen to thirty-four '' Stellar'' and the failed '' New York Dog'' venture in

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. ''Kiss'' is published at 2-4 Ely Place in

Dublin 2 Dublin 2, also rendered as D2 and D02, is a historic postal district on the southside of Dublin, Ireland. In the 1960s, this central district became a focus for office development. More recently, it became a focus for urban residential developme ...

. ''Kisss rivals are the

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's ''

Bliss BLISS is a system programming language developed at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) by W. A. Wulf, D. B. Russell, and A. N. Habermann around 1970. It was perhaps the best known system language until C debuted a few years later. Since then, C b ...

'' and '' Sugar''. Upon its launch ''Kiss'' was lauded in the Irish media for its attempts to contribute to a more liberal and sexualised Ireland, one where the influence of the

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had declined dramatically in the preceding decade. Only three decades previously, such teenage-oriented magazines were much more reserved in their content and approach and even the titles, i.e. '' Jackie'' and ''

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'', were not as outspoken as the word "kiss" in capitalised letters. ''Kiss'' was launched by O'Doherty's publishing company as a response to the increasing popularity of similar, albeit British-based, publications such as ''Bliss'' and ''Sugar''. It launched on 31 October 2002, at the original (much-deflated by current standards) price of €2.50 and aimed at female readers between the ages of fourteen and seventeen. The first issue featured heavily its mantra of dealing with teenage problems, including articles on school bullying and the difficulties of blushing, written in a "chatty and informative" manner so as not to "patronise" the target audience. However O'Doherty is adamant that his magazine will not encourage young children to "sleep with their boyfriends by providing How-To-Pleasure-Your-Fella features". To supplement its tone ''Kiss'' employs experts on what teenagers consider fashionable, with its so-called "agony aunt" being Sarah Scully, a child psychologist in

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Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

. Upon its launch the magazine was edited by Susan Vasquez, who went on to be the editor of O'Doherty's ''Stellar''. The magazine was also edited by Nathalie Màrquez Courtney and Sarah Breen. KISS published its last print issue in September 2014. KISS relaunched in 2019 as an online-first platform. The website, (www.KISS.ie) follows the same ethos as the magazine, including advice, information, celebrity coverage, fashion, beauty and features.

References

{{Reflist Defunct magazines published in Ireland Magazines published in Ireland Monthly magazines published in Ireland Magazines established in 2002 Magazines disestablished in 2014 Mass media in Dublin (city) Teen magazines