Vogue’s Edwina McCann: News Corp planning Prestige Network expansion

It looks like another tough year for magazine publishers. KK Press have closed their titles T: The New York Times Style Magazine and Cosmopolitan Australia.

There is still no word on potential buyers for Australia’s biggest magazine publisher, Are Media, amid rumours its flagship weekly tabloid New Idea could be axed.

And according to the most recent Guideline SMI numbers, magazine ad revenue for December 2025 was down 29% on the year before.

However, Mumbrella has learned News Corp is planning to expand its Prestige News Network as Vogue takes over the Sydney Opera House for a day this week.

The news comes as Nathan Jolly and Tim Burrowes reported last week on the challenges News Corp is facing and how it no longer breaks out Australian performance. The trajectory of its Prestige division seems to be a bright spot.

Resourcing and brand strength working together

Looking at successful magazines can be more instructional than raking over the ashes of those recently deceased.

Measuring an audience these days is best done across print and digital with Vogue Australia leading the smallish fashion category.

Source: Roy Morgan Cross Platform Readership as as September 2025

Ask people about Vogue Australia’s success and they will usually mention brand strength – still strong 67 years after launch in Australia – and the influence of News Corp Australia.

While finding a home with News Corp as one of its portfolio of licensed Conde Nast titles helps enormously, it’s not a guarantee of success. The publisher has closed or sold a number of magazine titles over the years.

Having a well-resourced parent is an advantage not lost on Vogue Australia and News Corp Prestige Network editorial director Edwina McCann.

“Being published by News Corp in Australia gives us access to an audience that an indie publisher will just never have,” she told Mumbrella. “The broader News Corp network reaches 17m plus Australians every month. That’s just not something that other publishers can offer.”

Leaning into events

The brand has managed to diversify its revenue streams in this market. That includes events, with two on the calendar for 2026 – Forces of Fashion this Friday (February 13) and Vogue Codes (later in the year).

A remote version of Forces of Fashion was held several years ago, but this will be the first time people can attend the in-person event (the first iteration was held on Zoom during Covid).

“Forces of Fashion was the brainchild of chief content officer and global editorial director of Vogue, Anna Wintour. It’s been held in many places around the world and we’ve been waiting for the right time to bring it to Sydney,” McCann said.

The guest list includes beauty entrepreneur and model Hailey Bieber, Australian actors Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi, Sarah Snook, and Phoebe Tonkin, model and entrepreneur Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, multi-Oscar-winning designer Catherine Martin, musician and actor Rita Ora, filmmaker and actor Taika Waititi, and Australian designer Nicky Zimmermann.

Commercial partners include pearl farmer and jeweller Paspaley, Belvedere Vodka, Dyson and Mastercard.

February’s Vogue Australia

The event will be covered by Vogue Australia’s social channels in addition to some sessions being broadcast live on YouTube, and has sold out.

When asked about the superstitions surrounding a Black Friday event, McCann said: “We decided we couldn’t go on the 14th, because it was Valentine’s Day. And it ended up being the only other date that was available at the Opera House. I’m not particularly superstitious so I think it will be fine.”

As to the star-filled guest list, McCann said: “Many of them are very close friends of the editor-in-chief, Christine Centenera. It is fabulous they’ve all been able to take the time out of their busy schedules to be here to launch it with us. We’re going to have a Summer Ball afterwards to celebrate the inaugural event in Australia.”

Those close friends of Centenera include her husband, actor Joel Edgerton.

Vogue’s luxury partners, including fashion label Zimmerman, have supported the event commercially by buying tables.

News wants Are Media to find a buyer

For Vogue Australia to continue thriving on the newsstand, retailers need a range of titles, or else they haven’t got anywhere to display the magazine.

“Competition is good,” said McCann. “We’ve always thought that at News. We want competition. That’s good for an industry. It’s good for a category. If a category starts to die, obviously everybody suffers in that category.”

Keeping a range of titles in print for the sector means keeping Are Media afloat, something McCann hopes will happen.

“I’ve got people who’ve worked for me who are editors at Are Media, and I’m very, very fond of them. I wish them every success in the world, because it’s good for all of us, when a category and a publisher is successful.

“We only hope that if [Are Media] is going to be sold again, which is obviously very disruptive, that the people who get involved appreciate the media landscape.”

One recent media sale that McCann was excited about was Nine sale of its radio business to the Laundy family. “I was really buoyed to see the Laundy family be successful. I know them well and I told Arthur [Laundy] it was fantastic news.”

Christine Centenera (from Centenera’s Facebook page)

McCann and Centenera previously worked together at Harper’s Bazaar Australia (it was owned by Are, and before that Bauer), before they teamed again at Vogue Australia. Centenera was fashion director under McCann when she was Vogue Australia editor. Both have since been promoted with Centenera taking on the editor-in-chief role three years ago.

It is a role that sees Centenera spend a lot of time out of the country, visiting the fashion capitals, spending time with her husband and looking after their young family.

“Centenera has very strong deputies under her on the magazine, and I very much take care of all of the digital assets. I have very strong people there, and that works,” said McCann about the editorial arrangement.

“Christine’s global contacts are unmatched in the fashion world. That allows us to make sure that we retain world-class editorial content, ensuring Vogue Australia is as good as any Vogue in the world.”

That doesn’t mean editors are flush with resources.

“The editorial budgets have never been big. We know how to do things and have them look very expensive, because we’ve always done that editorially. It’s always been champagne on a beer budget.”

Launch plans for more Prestige

McCann revealed the company has plans to expand the News Prestige Network, perhaps as soon as this year.

In addition to Vogue Australia, News Prestige includes other licensed Conde Nast titles Vogue Living and GQ plus magazine inserts The Australian Weekend Magazine and Wish.

“We intend to bring some new brands to Australia, which is very exciting, because they are ones that will resonate with new readers, and build out audiences for News. It will also introduce new clients to News. I enjoy leading growth assets – I’m not very good at just maintenance.”

McCann has signed NDAs which prevent any more detail. She did let slip that any launch will be as an inserted magazine, if there is a print component. That is a strategy that has been working well at The Australian, she explained, which now carries print editions of GQ magazine.

“The lifestyle content in The Australian has just gone from strength to strength. We’ve gone from believing that lifestyle content can’t drive subscriptions, to understanding that is not true now. The Friday magazines have had a really good financial year and they’re continuing to do very well. We’re not seeing any kind of decline in consumer or advertiser demand, and we can see that content resonating with our digital audiences on the app.

“We’re starting to think differently about how we might present all that lifestyle category together, to really amplify its strength.”