Stephen Jones (contraband)

The world of online magazines is nothing revolutionary. Several new voices have emerged, while some of the titans of print media have opted to go the digital route, making the online magazine market heavily saturated and highly competitive. However, in an area that many felt would be “old hat” by now, photographer/filmmaker/businessman Stephen Jones saw an opportunity to do something new and innovative with the medium. The result, Contraband Magazine: a monthly, multicultural publication dedicated to high tech, high fashion and cutting-edge journalism. Jones idea was to bring together an international talent pool of the best graphic designers, students, published and unpublished thinkers of our day, to bring honest, unbiased insight to the world of high fashion, modeling, filmmaking, technology and politics. This formula, coupled with a ferocious online marketing campaign, and an experienced staff of professionals, including Hank Byrd (Entertainment Editor), Harold Whaley (Digital Advisor), Jon Miller (Associate Editor), has garnered Jones and Contraband Magazine a substantial amount of eyeballs in its short period on the net. Jones is hoping that the fast increase in readership will attract large advertising dollars by the fourth quarter of this year. With Contraband Magazine posting impressive numbers in a short period of time, there is no doubt that Jones and his labor of love will exceed expectations as they push visual and journalistic boundaries every month in order to stay one step ahead of the competition. So far so good.