"Samir Husni, the University of Mississippi professor known as “Mr. Magazine,” is relinquishing his duties as chairman of the journalism department at the school on June 30, and will not seek the role of dean.

Instead, Husni is launching the Magazine Innovation Center, a non-profit think tank of sorts, and says he will devote the remaining years of his professional career to furthering the future of print."

" But this new model of targeted content that can be assembled cheaply could become popular as advertising growth slows and consumers spend more time across multiple sites. "Consumer engagement is shifting toward niche-content experiences," says Andrew Braccia, a partner at venture-capital firm Accel Partners who sits on the board of SB Nation. "Three to five years from now, people will no longer be drawing a distinction between traditional forms of publishing and what we know as blogs today."

Some advertisers are buying in. The New England Sports Network, a regional cable network that doesn't advertise on large online sports portals, began buying ads on SB Nation's Boston Celtics blog in January to reach New England sports fans. "We're looking for the best targeted experience that we can get," says Michael Hall, director of new media for the company.