Q&A: Sophia Epstein - Editor Digital Frontier Magazine
Special Edition of HDT Newsletter
Digital Frontier magazine hits the shelves and takes over the shop this week with issue 003 Curiosity. We are excited to present a Q&A with the editor, Sophia Epstein, as she breaks down what makes Digital Frontier stand out on the newsstand, why you should be reading it and more. Plus her More/Less 5 things list.
Happy Reading!
Hi Desert Times: Please tell us a little bit about yourself.
Sophia Epstein: I’m a very mixed bag! I’m half British, half Australian and grew up in Shanghai – and I think that third-culture kid upbringing really shaped my view on the world, it amped up my curiosity and proved the importance of digital connection. I’ve been a journalist in London for ten years now, my first job was at Wired and I’ve written for them on and off throughout my career, as well as the BBC and independent publications such as Broccoli and Contagious. I tried my hand at TV producing too for a few years – so if you’ve ever seen Strange Evidence, know I was partly responsible :’)
HDT: How did Digital Frontier come to be?
SE: Our co-founders are two brothers, one has a background in tech, the other in publishing. They noticed a gap in the market for more nuanced and optimistic in-depth tech reporting, so decided to fill it. They asked me to join after one of them saw me moderating a panel at a tech conference, he said he was impressed because I kept finding new ways to ask a question when the panelist wasn’t giving me a straight answer. So I was there on day one, sat around a table with our tiny team in an unusual members club, and I immediately put my hand up to say I’d take on the print magazine.
HDT: What makes Digital Frontier stand out on the newsstands?
SE: Our covers! Our design director Charlotte Cripps sees every one as a work of art, and every issue they get bolder. We’re not instantly recognizable as a tech mag, which really echoes our not-a-traditional-tech-mag approach. Our latest one, the Curiosity issue, is next level – we cut actual rabbit holes into it, so people would be feeling curious when they picked it up.
HDT: Why should my customers buy/read it?
SE: As well as being just a beautiful thing to behold – from the cover to the spreads and illustrations inside – the content is really well-researched and thought-provoking. Technology isn’t a niche thing anymore, it’s everywhere and part of all of our lives, and it might sound a bit fanciful but I believe the contents of our magazine will help people understand the world around them better.
HDT: What were the biggest challenges in working with print media?
SE: It’s a rollercoaster ride working in print. I started my career on Wired’s print mag – wrote nothing for online – and it felt, then, that the days for print were numbered. But now we’ve kind of come full circle, and I don’t think it’s about nostalgia, at least not entirely, I think there’s just something special – especially as so much of our lives are digital – about sitting still and holding something weighty in your hands. One reader got in touch a few months ago, he said he hadn’t read a magazine since he was a kid but he picked up issue 002 in the airport and read it cover to cover on his flight. He said it genuinely changed his life. So, it’s a challenge getting some people to believe that print is not dead, but when people get it, when someone finds a print mag that speaks to them, they’re all in!
HDT: What current or vintage magazines inspire you and/or would you recommend to my readers?
SE: I picked up Mushroom People the other day, which is a gorgeous, shiny coffee table mag – it gave me some design ideas for issue 004. I also love Fatboy Zine, which is a food-focused independent mag, I saw the creator/editor speak at a magazine conference and the thought he puts into, not just the content, but who writes it, how it fits together, was really inspiring.
More or Less
List 5 things you want to see more of:
witty word play
wholesome interactions
authentically original content
AI agents with fun personalities
algoraves
List 5 things you want to see less of:
tech doomerism
sequels/origin stories
adding AI to your product just for the clout
closed-source, centralized AI
one-word tweets
Follow up question:
HDT: What’s are ‘algoraves’ and how do I get in on it?
SE: Ahah algoraves are these music events where the DJ is live-coding the music! I’m obsessed with them but no one else wants to go with me ha – this is a great piece about them too:
Thanks Sophia and Digital Frontier. The Curiosity issue is available today at the shop and online at our website hideserttimes.com. Come in and get yours today!