Readers' Digest plans 24 new products

Readers' Digest, having cut back on its print products, has plans to expand its online offerings greatly, along with some new print publications.

It'll be interesting to see how successful this will be. The company says it will "return to its roots" in producing material for a "family-centered" audience. I, as a long-time reader who scrapped the magazine in recent years due to the decline of its content, remain skeptical. This, like National Geographic or The New Yorker, was a magazine that was perfect to read at my pace -- and in print. But the editors fell into the "gotta speed up our readers" mantra that's spoiled so many magazines, filling them with short, breezy, uninteresting items designed for those who "don't have time to read." Hey, folks! Your product is a magazine. People like to spend time with magazines.