Record (magazine)

History

The first issue of the Record was published in 1898; however, it stemmed from an earlier publication, the Gleaner. The Australasian Union Gleaner began earlier in a type-written form, and reported on the church's evangelistic progress. A new version of the Gleaner was first published in 1896. It was published monthly by the Australian Tract Society, and printed by the Echo Publishing Company (now Signs Publishing Company) in the Melbourne suburb of North Fitzroy which (today, at least) is an inner suburb. The last issue was published the following year.

The Tract Society divided, and responsibility for the publication passed to the Australasian Union Conference (now South Pacific Division), and it was renamed the Union Conference Record, or Record for short. The first issue was published in early 1898. It was published monthly, until mid-1902, when it was published twice a month. Starting in early 1907, the paper was published weekly.

Meanwhile, in 1906 the Signs Publishing Company had moved to the small town of Warburton, situated 85 km east of Melbourne's center. Also, some issues were printed by the Avondale Press in Cooranbong in the Lake Macquarie region of New South Wales.

A column whose title was "People and Events" showed a general focus appeared, concluding with the 27 March 1967 issue. This was replaced by the regular page "Flashpoint" in the next issue (3 April 1967). A minor feature titled "Finally brethren", consisting of a short pithy quotation, first appeared in the 19 June 1967 issue. Its present title (as of 2010) is simply "Finally".

Record conducted a survey in 1991 of both general readers, and of ministers and teachers who were mailed surveys individually. The weekly circulation was 25,500 at that time. 60% of the general reader respondents were 50 years or older. These reported their top three reasons for reading the Record, out of a choice of 10, as "1. To be informed about the church's activities in the South Pacific Division (55.3 per cent). 2. To be spiritually uplifted (36.3 per cent). 3. To gain insights into practical Christianity (35.2 percent)."

While the editor did note some disagreement, he stated:

"Three points are worth noting: First, the overwhelming majority of all readers say that the RECORD should keep the readers informed, the RECORD should encourage discussion of issues facing the church, and readers should have the right to speak candidly in the letters section. Second, RECORD is seen to support the church's doctrines, lifestyle emphasis, ministry, administration etc. Third, the overwhelming majority feel that, granted the spectrum of readers the RECORD seeks to reach, it has a good balance in its editorial mix."

Management and editorial staffing changes were implemented during 2009. The Record office was moved to Sydney to the church's South Pacific Division headquarters in the suburb of Wahroonga. The printing and distribution remained in Warburton. Commencing on 6 February 2010, the publication went from black-and-white to colour, and was given a layout makeover. At the same time, the magazine changed from being weekly to fortnightly (every two weeks).

Current Team

Senior Consulting Editor: Glenn Townend

Senior Editor: Jarrod Stackelroth

Assistant Editor: A. Kent Kingston

Assistant Editor: Vania Chew

Assistant Editor: Maritza Brunt

Assistant Editor (Digital): Linden Chuang

Graphic Designer: Theodora Amuimuia

Copyeditor: Tracey Bridcutt

Noticeboard: Naomi Hurst

Former editors

There are no editors listed until mid-1907. Subsequently:

Anna L. Hindson (?July 1907 – December 1922)

A. W. Anderson (January 1923 – December 1923)

Anna L. Hindson (January 1924 – December 1933)

Viola M. Rogers (January 1934 – September 1938)

Reuben E. Hare (October 1938 – May 1939)

E. E. Roenfelt (June 1939 – July 1940)

H. E. Piper (July 1940 – October 1941)

S. V. Stratford (October 1941 – August 1943)

A. G. Stewart (August 1943 – December 1954)

L. C. Naden (January 1955 – January 1963)

Robert R. Frame (January 1963 – September 1966)

(W. E. Battye, interim "associate editor")

Robert H. Parr (March 1967 – January 1981)

Geoffrey E. Garne (February 1981 – September 1986)

James N. Coffin (October 1986 – November 1991)

Bruce Manners (November 1991 – March 2004)

Nathan G. Brown (April 2004 – October 2009)

Pablo Lillo (October 2009 – 2012)

James Standish (September 2012 - May 2016)

Jarrod Stackelroth (June 2016 - present)

Anna Hindson was the longest serving editor, and Nathan Brown is believed to have been the youngest editor. Bruce Manners affirmed his preceding editors as follows: Jim Coffin had an "ability to readily articulate [his] thoughts", Geoff Garne had "depth", and Bob Parr had "wit".

Awards

Record articles have received a number of Australasian Religious Press Association Awards for Excellence:

In 2013:

Bronze Award in the "Best Profile" category, for Daniel Reynaud's profile about an Anzac army chaplain.

Bronze Award in the "Best Theological" category, for "Laying down the law" by Pastor Anthony MacPherson.

In 2011:

Silver Award in the "Item or feature that shows the most originality" category, for "Unequally Yoked".

Bronze Award in the "Most improved publication" category.

Highly Commended in the "Best article applying faith to life" category, for "The Real Mile High Club".

In 2009:

Silver Award in the "Best editorial/opinion piece" category, for David Edgren's article "My Life Verse". The judges commented: a "confession [that] took courage to write, and takes courage to read, although it is ultimately rewarding and uplifting."

"Highly commended" in the “Best news item” category, for Adele Nash's report "Leaders Support Targeting Binge Drinking". The judges commented: "A piece that not only details the Adventist support for anti-binge drinking campaigns but also steps back and reflects on the problem of binge drinking within some sections of the Adventist community."

In 2008:

"Best editorial/opinion piece" for Nathan Brown's editorial "The 'family' myth" which critiqued the "family values" rhetoric of politicians, and appeared in Record just prior to the 2007 federal election. The judges commented,

"What a pity we didn’t hear more of this kind of thing during the election campaign, when the phrase ‘family values’ was being tossed about in into almost every speech and discussion. Nathan Brown, in examining what this nebulous term really means, urges us to see it in a larger perspective, as going beyond the nuclear family and into the wider world. He also points out something preachers and teachers often forget, that Jesus was very far from being a family man in the narrow Western sense. A brave and original point of view."