Magazine ad sales: Southern Progress slumps, Hoffman gains

Magazines at Birmingham-based Southern Progress Corporation saw big drops in ad sales comparing the first quarter of 2008 and 2009:

• -28.9 percent: Southern Accents
• -26.9 percent: Southern Living
• -11.4 percent: Cooking Light

But Hoffman Media saw an increase in ad sales during the same quarter for one magazine:

• +14.7 percent: Cooking With Paula Deen

U.S. magazines lost 20.6 percent in ad sales overall during the first quarter.