''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

headquartered in

Downtown Austin Downtown Austin is the central business district of Austin, Texas, United States. The area of the district is bound by Lamar Boulevard to the west, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard (Austin), Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to the north, Inte ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. Founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy, ''Texas Monthly'' chronicles life in contemporary

, writing on

politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

, the environment,

industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

, and

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

. The magazine also covers leisure topics such as

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

, dining, and travel. It is a member of the

City and Regional Magazine Association The City and Regional Magazine Association (CRMA) is an American nonprofit organization founded in 1978 that facilitates professional development and training for member magazines and methods for exchanging information and ideas. Activities The ...

(CRMA). After being sold to Emmis Publishing, L.P. in 1998, the magazine was later sold to Genesis Park LP in 2016 for $25 million, and is currently owned by Randa Williams . In 2021, ''Texas Monthly'' began expanding into video production through its acquisition of Phillips Productions, best known as the producers of '' Texas Country Reporter''.

Subject matter

''Texas Monthly'' takes as its premise that Texas began as a distinctive place and remains so. It is the self-appointed arbiter of all things culturally Texan, with past articles on Texas BBQ, the Texas Rangers (including Joaquin Jackson's famous 1994 cover appearance), and Texas musicians. ''Texas Monthly''s annual "Bum Steer Awards" poke fun at Texas politicians and policies, odd Texas-related news items and personalities from the previous year.

Anna Nicole Smith Vickie Lynn Marshall (née Hogan; November 28, 1967 – February 8, 2007), known professionally as Anna Nicole Smith, was an American model, actress, and television personality. Smith started her career as a ''Playboy'' magazine centerfold in M ...

(prior to her death) was a perennial "winner". Other Bum Steer "Hall of Famers" include

Ross Perot Henry Ross Perot ( ; June 27, 1930 – July 9, 2019) was an American businessman, politician, and philanthropist. He was the founder and chief executive officer of Electronic Data Systems and Perot Systems. He ran an Independent politician ...

Tom DeLay Thomas Dale DeLay (; born April 8, 1947) is an American author and retired politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives. A Republican Party (United States), Republican, DeLay represented Texas's 22nd congress ...

, and

Jessica Simpson Jessica Ann Johnson (née Simpson; born July 10, 1980) is an American singer, actress, and fashion designer. After performing in church choirs as a child, Simpson signed with Columbia Records in 1997, aged seventeen. Her debut studio album, '' ...

. It releases biennial lists with explanations of the "Ten Best" and "Ten Worst" Texas state legislators. Since the establishment of the magazine, barbecue enthusiasts have been among the ''Texas Monthly'' staff. The magazine's first article about barbecue in Texas was published in 1973. The magazine often ranks what it considers to be the best barbecue restaurants in Texas. Calvin Trillin of ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'' said in 2008 that East Texas barbecue often did not interest the Austin-based staff of the ''Texas Monthly'', who were more focused on Central Texas barbecue. In December 2021, the magazine signed a three-year

first-look deal A first-look deal is any contract containing a clause granting, usually for a fee or other consideration that covers a specified period of time, a pre-emption right, right of first refusal, or right of first offer (also called a right of first neg ...

with

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

and

HBO Max Max (known in other countries as, and soon to be reverted globally to HBO Max) is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. It is a proprietary unit of Warner Bros. Discovery Streaming on behalf of Home Box Of ...

Headquarters

It has its headquarters at 816 Congress Ave. in

. It occupies a area on the 17th floor of the building. it has about 80 employees. - Updated May 13, 2011. Around 2009 the ''Texas Monthly'' headquarters moved to University Park, on the site of the former

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

. The headquarters was scheduled to move to its current location in Downtown Austin in the summer of 2011. Previously the headquarters was in Suite 1600 of 701 Brazos in Downtown Austin.

Awards

The magazine has received ten

National Magazine Award The National Magazine Awards, also known as the Ellie Awards, honor print and digital publications that consistently demonstrate superior execution of editorial objectives, innovative techniques, noteworthy enterprise and imaginative design. Or ...

s: * General Excellence—2009, 2003, 1992, 1990 * Public Interest—1996, for "Not What the Doctor Ordered" by Mimi Swartz * Photography—1990 * Reporting—1985, for "The Man in the Black Hat" (part 1 and 2) by Paul Burka * Public Service—1980, for "Why Teachers Can't Teach" by Gene Lyons * Reporting—1979, for a three-part series by Richard West * Outstanding Editorial Achievement in Special Journalism—1974

Texas Monthly Press

In the 1980s, Texas Monthly Press published such books as '' Goodbye to a River'' and '' Hank the Cowdog'' and authors such as Bud Shrake, Stephen Harrigan and Gary Cartwright. Gulf Publishing Company purchased Texas Monthly Press in 1989.

References

* . Retrieved Apr. 13, 2005.
''Texas Monthly'' Awards
Retrieved Apr. 13, 2005.

External links