It's the very last issue of CosmoGirl, and judging from the lovely cover, this is one teen mag that will be universally missed. Taylor Swift bids the magazine a proper goodbye, posing with her hands in a heart shape (and wearing sweetly layered heart necklaces, naturally). The interview is bound to be interesting, with her newfound fame and recent Joe Bro breakup.

The magazine takes a cue from Barbara Walters and does its own spin on the most intriguing people of 2008, including Jesse McCartney, Nastia Liukin, and a Twilight star. Because it is the holiday issue, you can find the best party girl fashion. and an obligatory gift guide (this one is conveniently pull-out, which is unsurprisingly appealing to any gift-shopping girl… including myself). And finally, in true teen magazine fashion, the final issue of CosmoGirl clocks in with "898 things you'll love."

This month, Beyonce steals the cover and snags Seventeen's "style star of the year" title. She chats about her personal style and even came up with the fashion concept for her photo shoot ("naughty-nerd geek chic," if you were wondering). Also included are fashion secrets from such stars as Blake Lively, Pink, and Miley Cyrus, plus the top 10 red carpet trends (one-shoulder necklines, belted maxidresses).

The mag also has an eye-opening article about HIV, and with latest statistics citing 33 million people worldwide infected, now is great time to teach young girls how to protect themselves. Seventeen includes a story about a 20-year-old from the Bronx whose life has been changed from the "epidemic." Bridging the HIV feature with the star style theme of the issue is a huge charity auction that allows readers to bid on their favorite celebs' wardrobes.

With the most enviable cover of them all, Teen Vogue lands Kristen Stewart - although come Friday, she'll be better known as Bella Swan. The budding actress and Twilight star talks about the upcoming blockbuster and addresses the less-than-thrilled reaction from the series' die-hard fans regarding her casting. She also touches on her understated wardrobe and love for Chanel.

In the spirit of Christmas, lots of holiday party fashion features and 82 gifts to give (and, more importantly, get). On the more economical side, the mag enlists Gryphon designer Aimee Cho to make a preppy peacoat endlessly glamorous with a DIY fur collar (faux, of course). Plus, articles about the pros and cons of getting paid for good grades and how teens can deal with the age-old problem of embarrassing parents.

Some of you may know that back in the dot com heyday, I worked for a teen girl start-up called Kibu — it was the job that lured me to San Francisco where I've been living ever since. Kibu is probably best known for being one of the few start-ups to pull the plug and give unspent millions back to investors.

One of Kibu's more misguided ventures IMHO was a brick-and-mortar retail location opened in Ghirardelli Square - a scenic location for tourists but not really a teen destination. Even more troubling than the location (which was great to work in btw - just hopped on the trolley) was the reality that Kibu didn't really have anything to sell. We offered consultations with the site's personalities (writer/hosts we called "Faces") on hair, fashion or college apps and gave away a lot of free lip gloss. Now if Kibu's execs were hip to the pop-up store concept, this could have been much more effective (and saved them from signing a very expensive lease).

I was reminded of this reading about Teen Vogue's pop-up store in a New Jersey mall - perfect location to keep the brand top-of-mind (even if "only a small percentage of its overall readership lives near enough to visit the store"). Just as Kibu's "Studio," even if it was a pop-up store, probably couldn't have saved the dot com right after the April 2000 crash, I'm not sure that this effort will save one of the handful of remaining teen magazines from following the same fate as YM, Teen People, Elle Girl, or Cosmo Girl. But I could be wrong. From the New York Times:

The Haute Spot is a so-called pop-up concept, meaning that the store is not permanent. The location will be open Nov. 28 through Dec. 26.

Teen Vogue, part of Condé Nast Publications, will also open two stores in March and April to promote prom wear (the locations are not set, but they will be in malls on the East and West Coasts). And in August, it will open two locations featuring back-to-school gear.

The stores will offer free snacks, informal modeling, a perfume bar, a makeup station, charging stations for cellphones and iPods, a gift-wrapping counter and racks of clothes.

Stylists and attendants at the store will advise visitors on lipstick, shoes and outfits.

And, to the delight of retailers, they will whisk visitors to stores in the mall where they can buy the products.

In a very timely fashion, Scarlett Johansson shines on the cover of CosmoGIRL! and chats candidly about her thoughts on the election and her support of Obama. There is also a not-so-timely guide to surviving college life that might have been better suited for the September issue. Plus, "death by texting," teen dating violence, and the increasing trend of helicopter parents (which we covered earlier this week).

On the Project 2424 front, the magazine talks with Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney. Also catch Ed Westwick, Zac Efron, and Sophia Bush. Looks like a fantastic issue, which makes the recent fate of CosmoGIRL! that much more heartbreaking. I'm curious to know whether they'll keep 2424 alive on the website because it's such a great program for girls.

With High School Musical mania hitting full force, Ashley Tisdale snags Seventeen's cover where she talks about playing Guitar Hero with her castmates, choosing a night at home watching reality TV over hitting the celeb-studded L.A. nightclubs, and hooking up with Zac Efron. The mag also talks to Zac about celeb crushes he would choose to play his on-screen girlfriend (let me guess, Vanessa?), among other things.

The Seventeen Body Peace Project is celebrating its first anniversary. Thousands of readers have already pledged to stop fighting with their bodies, and the mag enlisted top fashion designers like Diane Von Furstenberg, Donna Karan, and Betsey Johnson to create "body shape celebrating" clothing and sign the Seventeen Body Peace Treaty. Also, how to discover your dream job, what they wish they knew before college (I'm a junior and these always make me regretful!), the dangers of smoking, and how to be a vegetarian in a healthy, balanced way.

Rachel Bilson, former star of "The OC," graces the cover of Teen Vogue. While she hasn't been in any new movies or shows lately, she just debuted a clothing line with DKNY that just might be the exception to the "movie stars are not fashion designers" rule. For the "Fashion at Work" theme, the mag talks to designers, models, stylists, editors, and interns.

Also, articles about college visits that get out-of-hand and teen girls' reliance on energy drinks. Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron have been on the past two months' covers, so to continue the HSM media circus, Corbin Bleu gets a little face time.

I can remember coming across my very first issue of CosmoGIRL! on the newsstands in 1999. I was a longtime reader of Seventeen (like most girls, much earlier than age 17!), and being the budding magazine addict that I am, couldn't wait to get my hands on another teen magazine that wasn't J-14 or Twist.

When most kids were begging mom for a candy bar as they sped through the checkout line, I would sneak a magazine into the cart. My mother eventually caught on to my antics and promptly limited my monthly magazine allotment. When it came down to it, CosmoGIRL! consistently trumped Seventeen. Although they both featured similar fashion layouts, lifestyle stories, and girl advice, CG had one power player that no other mag masthead could claim: Atoosa Rubenstein. Everyone - especially preteen girls - loves a good Cinderella story, and reading the editor's letters from a lowly, frizzy-haired fashion assistant who climbed through the ranks and was granted her own girl-powered publication after just six years in the biz was a boost that I looked forward to every month.

When Atoosa left for Seventeen, CosmoGIRL! struggled to define who its target reader was and how to set itself apart from competitors. Seventeen, a staple since the 1940s, has long secured its spot as the go-to teen magazine. Teen Vogue snaps up girls (and youthful-minded women!) who have a passion for fashion. CosmoGIRL! was never quite a little sister to sex-crazed Cosmopolitan, but during the post-Atoosa era, it just wasn't quite the socially-conscious, edgier twin of Seventeen that it once claimed to be.

Interestingly enough, the magazine held its own when the teen mag market was bustling. At one point, between 2001 and 2004, teens were faced with monthly issues from Seventeen, Teen Vogue, Teen People, ELLEgirl, Teen, YM, and CosmoGIRL!. These days, the only two that are still holding on are Teen Vogue and Seventeen.

So what gives? Teens are spending record time in front of their laptops, reading blogs that are tailored to their interests instead of picking up magazines that cover an umbrella of issues. Also, while teens are just as celebrity-obsessed as they were during the launch of Teen People, they now have Us Weekly, InTouch, and Life & Style to satiate that interest (as well as Pink Is The New Blog, Pop Sugar, Go Fug Yourself and Perez Hilton). Seventeen and Teen Vogue will own what's left of the print teen market for now…but this latest closure must be sending shivers down the spines of staffers at both mags.

'Guitar Hero' number one (according to a new study out on teens and video games from Pew, teens cite Guitar Hero as the game they play most. There's lots of interesting stuff in this study - how gaming is connected to civic activity, boys vs. girls/what they're playing, teens playing games on cell phones, what tweens vs. teens think of virtual worlds and more. Read the AP coverage here.)

- gmail not kid-friendly? (not according to this report that argues its too easy to hide your identity using gmail) (CNET)

- Buh Bye 'TRL' (MTV will pull the plug on the countdown staple in November) (AP via Yahoo! News)

- Teen Vogue soldiers on (ad pages up, bucking the overall decline in the teen mag space) (Mediabistro)

- Too many 'richies' on TV? (Salon.com, daypass required, on why the wealthy teen soaps might not be such a good thing. Thanks Sheryl!)

- Twittering the debates (Look out Rick Sanchez, Current TV [my old employer] is making news by showing a live Twitter feed during the debates. Check out the promo here. And Gallup does poll cell phones…in case you thought they didn't like I did.) (Hollywood Reporter)

- Campus Movie Fest (expands…with help from AT&T and Apple. Plus College Fest is right around the corner) (Mobile Marketing Today)

- Generational myth? (a professor attempts to debunk the generational differences theory. And MarketingVOX has new research on the difference between Gen X and Y moms)

- Porter Novelli's pop-up agency (“We have an agency filled with millennials, with a need to feel empowered”….so they created a separate "pop-up" agency for them) (New York Times, reg. required)

The October issue of Cosmo Girl features Mila Kunis, who used to star on teen favorite "That '70s Show," and is now transitioning into movies with "Forgetting Sarah Marshall." She talks about her early years as a teenage actress and her longtime boyfriend Macaulay Culkin. For another dose of mid-90s TV stars, Joshua Jackson discusses his old show ("Dawson's Creek") and new show ("Fringe") and old girlfriend (Katie Holmes) and new girlfriend (Diane Kruger).

The magazine explores the myth that you can tell if someone has an eating disorder based on appearances online. It also features the cast of The N's "Student Body," a reality show where 11 teens competed to get in shape. Cosmo Girl partnered with The Princeton Review to come up with the best 100 colleges for women, and they interviewed Diane English, director of "The Women," on how to break into such a tough business.

Seventeen snagged stars from the two biggest shows on TV, "Ugly Betty's" America Ferrera and "Gossip Girl's" Penn Badgley. Both talk about their significant others and famous costars. Because this month is the "makeover issue," the mag has all kinds of "change your look, change yourself" info - beauty advice, figure-flattering pointers, skin perfecters, even "makeunders." Seventy eight percent of girls say the fit of their clothes directly influences how they feel about their bodies - which I find very interesting and also personally true - also body expert Jessica Weiner weighs in.

Seventeen has an ultimate college guide, too, but instead of enlisting industry experts, they have 15 girls at 15 different campuses blogging about what college life is really like. If there are any teens in your life, direct them to Seventeen.com where they can sign up for a college tuition sweepstakes. Plus, everything you need to know about breasts and stories from victims of sexual assault.

Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato, best friends and budding stars who are sure to have countless covers in their future, grace the front of the fall issue of Teen. Selena overs a sneak peek to her new movie out called "Another Cinderella Story." Also included is a preview of the upcoming "Harry Potter."

Lots of fall fashion coverage, including how to incorporate the menswear trend in a flirty, feminine way, where to find bags, boots and big watches without breaking the bank. Plus, as a self-admitted sale addict, I want to pick up this issue just for their "secret to scoring celeb-worthy style" with secondhand clothing and accessories.

Zac Efron snags the spot as the very first boy-only cover of Teen Vogue. Whoo hoo, Zefron! It's the annual "Young Hollywood" issue, so you can also expect profiles on Kate Mara, Leighton Meester, Elle Fanning (little sis of Dakota), the boys of "90210," and more. Other highlights include an exposé on teen cosmetic surgery and healthy eating gone too far.

No matter how smart she is, no matter how many interests and hobbies she has, nearly every adolescent girl goes through a stage where she wonders what her life would be like if she was a model… and secretly wonders if she'll have an unexpected growth spurt and wake up tomorrow morning as a leggy six-foot catwalker. And it does happen, albeit rarely. A tiny number of "genetically correct" [by today's modeling standards] people graduate from high school, and instead of heading to college like most, jaunt to Milan, Paris, London, and New York to lead an unimaginable existence as a jetsetting supermodel. Stormstyle.com wants to appeal to the millions of girls who will only dream about such a life.

Storm Models, the agency behind famous faces like Kate Moss and Lily Cole, is launching a digital channel designed to give girls between the ages of 15-19 a behind-the-scenes peek at the fashion industry. In addition to bi-monthly "branded" editorials, the site will have daily reader-generated content (although I think it takes awhile to establish a regular audience that's comfortable enough to begin posting their own content). According to the press release, there will also be "content created by the youth team at LIVE! a magazine written, illustrated, produced and distributed by the young people of south London. All the contributors are mentored and supported by a team of journalists from a wide-range of publications."

Just clicking around the site, you might think that Stormstyle.com is a new fashion magazine - the format is creative and very entertaining. The content appears a little Teen Vogue, but with more of a model slant than celebrity focus. Style from fashion editors, product recommendations from makeup artists, and candid blogs from young models give the reader brief, but revealing glances into an industry that's fascinating but still rather foreign.

The debut of Stormstyle.com comes fresh off the heels of Vogue's Model.Live launch, which is a similar concept from IMG. Pretty young models frolic around in front of a camera, revealing bits and pieces of their behind-the-scenes world. Think "America's Next Top Model" without the TV - and Tyra. Like Storm's venture, branding plays a big part with Express.com as the primary sponsor. Bebo as the "publisher." We were told in an email from Model.Live's publicist that they have had "1.25 million interactions with the series since launch."

While the two have very different formats, they will essentially appeal to the same audience. Unfortunately for IMG, Storm's website is more hands-on, engaging and very imaginative. Pretty impressive for a modeling agency.

Teen Vogue has a political blog (called "Political Partier," natch!)

- Peace, love and teen Ts (this year's MAGIC show was full of feel-good Ts - does this mean skulls are out? Plus if you're a Japan-o-file, check out Japan-c - thanks Jess!) (Post Bulletin)

- Retailers hope to boost back to school sales (with virtual goods) (Media Post, reg. required)

- Music matters (to Asian youth - preso from Ian Stuart of MTV Asia. Wired looks at the NON-impact of the RIAA's lawsuit strategy on filesharing. Plus British DJs encouraging youth to drink? Yes, according to this study [second item] ) (Media Life Magazine)

- Teen drug use is down (both illicit and prescription while 18+ prescription drug use is up) (USA Today)

- Seth MacFarlane's Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy (coming soon to Google. Plus Ikea planning humorous webisodes. And AdAge looks at the viral happenings around the new show "Fringe" while Media Post zooms in on "Entourage's" use of WHirrl, a location based networking site) (WSJ) (NewTeeVee)

- Big mother… (will be watching what her kids are doing at school with new surveillance technology. Facebook tests the NJ Attorney General's "report abuse" icon. And One Laptop to be sold in the U.S. via Amazon) (L.A. Times, reg. required) (USA Today) (BBC)

From Crain's New York: Teen Vogue magazine: Karin Tracy, 33, was promoted to advertising director for the Conde Net title. She was formerly advertising manager.

The number are in from the Publishers Information Bureau and it doesn't look good for YM and Seventeen — two teen magazine stalwarts. According to Media Life Magazine, "through July, [YM's] ad pages were off by 45 percent, with revenues based on its rate card off a like amount." This makes YM the most vulnerable in the category. Seventeen isn't doing to hot either. Although it leads the category in overall pages sold, its pages are off 14.4 percent through July. Surprisingly Teen People also had a rough month with its pages down nearly 11 percent.

The winners are the newbies: Teen Vogue (up 71 percent), Elle Girl (up 35 percent) and Cosmo Girl (up 5 percent). Check out the article for the rest of the numbers.

Related:

Should YM Throw in the Towel?
YM Relaunch: Young Miss Sophisticate?