And You Thought You Had It Bad
China, a nation of 1 billion people, has 900 literary magazines, only 90 of which manage to turn out some profit. The reasons, according to this symposium are that:
First, chief editors are appointed by governing bodies of magazines or some government officials. As a result, in most cases, seniority enjoys top priority in such personnel maneuvers and many retired officials who are ignorant of literature are given the posts of editor-in-chief. Second, some writers become editors-in-chief after they become prominent. Chief editors with such backgrounds are sometimes biased, narrow-minded or weak in managerial capability and tend to form charmed circles around them.