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In 1996, Bernie Mann, a longtime veteran of the radio business, bought The State magazine. The Charlotte-based operation had been around for more than six decades, but had little name recognition, a circulation of only about 20,000 and a full-time staff of four. Most issues came in at less than 40 mostly black-and-white pages.

"It seemed like those radio stations I would buy that had potential but were underdeveloped," Mann said.

This year the magazine, rechristened Our State: Down Home in North Carolina, celebrates its 75th anniversary, a major milestone in an era when print publications are facing stiff competition from online news sources. Circulation has increased nearly eightfold from 12 years ago, and the page count has increased six-fold. The magazine has also branched out into other media, and its UNC-TV show won an Emmy Award this year for Best Magazine Series.

"I'd almost equate it to something like National Geographic," said Lois Smith, a 72-year-old retired schoolteacher from Raleigh who has been reading the magazine for more than 50 years. "Some of those early issues were pretty thin, but the amount of coverage they give to our state now is breathtaking."

Still longtime readers find much that is familiar, including Alan Hodge, whose state quizzes appear in every issue, and the sunny tone taken in almost every story.

"We're totally Pollyanna," the 72-year-old Mann said. "There's not a single negative word in our magazine. The world is filled with negativity. If we review a book and don't like it, we don't run the review. There are plenty of places where you can hear negative stories. We want to be a respite from that. And we seem to be doing very well covering the positive stuff."

Lighthouses to canjos

When Mann bought the magazine, he moved it to Greensboro, where he lives. The operation, now based out of an office complex off Green Valley Road, employs about 50 people and also publishes lifestyle magazine North Carolina Signature, as well as the program for the ACC Men's Basketball Tournament.

Our State's readership, Mann said, is mainly made up of individuals older than 40, divided about equally between men and women. Roughly 80 percent have a college degree. The magazine has subscribers in all 50 states as well as 50 countries, including Iraq.

"We got a letter from a soldier there who had never known about the magazine until he saw it sitting in a medic's office," said Editor Vicky Jarrett. "He said that he saw it and it felt like home and that he couldn't be without it again. Of course, we promptly sent him some issues."

Stories in the magazine cover a range of subjects, such as lighthouses and canjos -- a one-string banjo made from a soda can and a yard-long piece of wood. A typical issue also includes plenty of travel articles, historical reminiscences and photography. The publication relies on about 30 freelancers to generate content.

The early years

Founded in 1933, the magazine was the brainchild of newspaperman Carl Goerch, a native of Tarrytown, N.Y., who moved to North Carolina in 1913 and could be quite a character.

"He had -- it wasn't an airplane -- but just a seat with a pair of wings attached," Jarrett said. "And he wasn't an awfully good navigator, so he would get lost often. And so he'd set down on some country road, ask for directions and be on his way."

The first issue, published on June 3, featured Gov. J.C.B. Ehringhaus on the cover and cost 10 cents. The then-weekly magazine had a circulation of about 2,000.

In the beginning, according to an article in last month's issue, Goerch would attract advertisers by telling them that if they ran ads in the first four issues and felt they weren't getting their money's worth, they could withdraw no strings attached. Many of the state's largest companies, including Wachovia and R.J. Reynolds, took him up on the offer and stayed on far longer than four issues.

By the late 1940s, circulation had grown to about 20,000 and in 1951, Goerch sold the magazine to former public relations man Bill Sharpe.

Through the years, the periodical also featured the work of celebrated newspaper writer Billy Arthur, photographer Aycock Brown and attorney Herbert Floyd Seawell Jr., who was reputed to show up in court wearing a baseball cap and tennis shoes.

Like Goerch, Mann is a native New Yorker. He moved to the Old North State in 1965 and said he has always been struck by the level of affection native North Carolinians have for their state.

"People live in a place like New Jersey, but they don't love New Jersey in the same way that people in North Carolina love where they live," he said. "And what we want to do in the magazine is reflect that pride."

Enhancing the magazine

Mann said there was nothing necessarily wrong with the publication he bought in 1996. But its previous owners hadn't done much in the way of marketing or poured as much money as they should have into growth.

"Not that many people even knew about it," Mann said. "I would ask people, 'You ever heard of it, you ever heard of it?' And the answer would be no."

He put a heavier emphasis on visuals, and for inspiration he looked to Arizona Highways, a glossy publication renowned for its photography and travel pieces. Mann also hired more advertising staff, and the magazine began sponsoring events and promotions around the state to increase its visibility.

Its weekly half-hour public television show, made up of many of the same type of feature stories included in the magazine, was launched in 2004.

Realtors also started giving gift subscriptions to new homeowners, and now, about a third of all subscriptions originate from the real estate sector, Mann said. A sizable number of issues also go to North Carolinians who have moved out of state. Total circulation stands at 156,000.

"It really touches people's lives," said Hodge, who started working for the magazine in 1989. "If you had family that had lived here for 200 years, you could really relate to it. But people just coming into the state, they could also look at it and go, 'Wow.' It opened up a whole new world to them."

Enduring tough times

Times are tough for print media as eyeballs and advertising dollars move to the Internet. Samir "Mr. Magazine" Husni, a consultant who has worked with Our State, said only 18 percent of all magazines launched can expect to make it into their fourth year.

"It's a major accomplishment not only to make it to 75 years, but also to still be healthy and growing," said Husni, who also serves as chairman of the journalism department at the University of Mississippi. "The secret for the success of Our State is the content and the relationship they've developed with readers and advertisers. If you flip through the pages, you can feel the human touch in the magazine. It feels like an old friend coming to visit. It's jumping at you to create a conversation."

Mann said he plans to expand the Web site but remains committed to the print product, which he believes is what most readers prefer.

"You have a 240-page magazine with beautiful photos, that's just not as compelling on the Internet," he said. "You don't get their full impact on a computer screen. If there's anything in this world that people are afraid of, it's change. So, instead of saying we are changing it, we're saying we're enhancing it."

Contact Robert C. Lopez at 691-5091 or robert.lopez@news-record.com