The Four Questions-Susan Caughman, New Hope Media

November 18, 2004

The Four Question with Susan Caughman, Owner/Publisher, New Hope Media

New York-based New Hope Media, formed in 2000 by Susan Caughman, Owner and Publisher, publishes bimonthly titles Adoptive Families and ADDitude. Adoptive Families, whose tagline is “What a difference it makes to come home to a child,” is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. ADDitude is a lifestyle magazine for families coping with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD). Both titles aim to be "celebratory and inspirational" as well as informative, said Caughman. New Hope joined MPA in 2002.

Q. What’s the best idea you’ve ever gotten from a reader?
A. I can't point to any one idea in particular. About one-third to one-half of Adoptive Families [content] comes from our readers. "The Truth About Domestic Adoption" [an article published about two years ago] was written by a reader who also happens to be a journalist. A lot of our photos are from readers too.

Q. What story in your magazines has had the greatest impact?
A. In Adoptive Families, two items. First is the article "The Truth About Domestic Adoption," which rebutted widely held misconceptions about adopting in the U.S. And [second,] we have regularly polled our readers on the topic of how long it took to adopt in the U.S. or abroad and how much it cost. The [poll] results – faster adoptions and lower costs than expected – surprised many and documented areas that were previously based only on speculation. In ADDitude, we recently published a booklet called "Ready to Learn," which consists of one-page tip sheets for parents and teachers about how to manage ten specific behaviors associated with ADD in the classroom (impulsivity, distractibility and so forth).

Q. Looking at magazines in general, what would you consider your favorite magazine article of all time?
A. I'm an avid magazine reader so I've got many of those. But my current favorite of all time is Lisa Belkin's stunning article in the New York Times Magazine, "The Lessons of Classroom 506." Belkin told the inspirational story of one family's attempts to get the educational services in Manhattan for their five-year-old with cerebral palsy, all while giving the reader clear explanations of the policy issues inherent in special-needs education. A tour de force.

Q. What's been your most successful promotion thus far?
A. At Adoptive Families, we fueled the year 2000 relaunch of the magazine by offering adoption professionals, gratis, 32 pages of the "Best of Adoptive Families." This booklet of classic articles was in turn distributed widely to families starting out in adoption. In general, however, Internet promotion is key for both Adoptive Families and ADDitude. We generate most of our subscriptions and a great deal of reader feedback via our websites.