MEDIUM OF THE MONTH. Jump's realistic attitude helps it stand out in the competitive teen market, Felix Salmon says. While UK magazines such as Maxim and FHM are crossing the Atlantic, a reciprocal wave is coming over from the US. We've witnessed the launch of UK versions of Shape and Men's Fitness from Mollin Publishing, and now the teen girls' magazine, Jump, from Weider Publications, is to make its UK debut in August. In the US, Jump bills itself as a magazine 'For girls who dare to be real.' While still a relatively small player in the crowded US market, it has a healthy growing circulation, which has jumped from 200,000 at its launch in 1997, to 350,000. By January, it's expected to reach 400,000. But in the context of the teen market, Jump is dwarfed by its rivals, Teen, YM and Seventeen, all of which have ad rates based on a paid-for circulation of at least two million. Agnes Lancaster, the publishing director of Jump, saw there was room for another teen title. 'No-one was addressing girls in a realistic manner. We encourage girls to be themselves,' she says. In many respects, however, Jump seems similar to any other teen title. 'Mad about hue - find your true colours' screams the front of the August issue, which breathlessly tells its readers, 'Why we love Maybelline Lip Express Lipstick 'n' Liner in One' and reveals, 'Cover boy confessions - how the love lives of five guy models from Miami are hardly picture perfect.' While Jump finds space for articles about suicide, Aids and lesbianism, its stance is always steadfastly responsible. According to Lancaster, Jump concentrates on familiar material - beauty, fashion, boys and celebrities, but 'the difference is how it presents it'. The standard celebrity piece, for instance, has a sportier twist in Jump, with a regular column called: 'How'd you get that body part?' And there is certainly a greater emphasis on sports and exercise than in other teen titles. The kind of advertising in the magazine holds no surprises. Ads from fashion retailers, such as the Gap, appear alongside those promoting Johnson & Johnson, L'Oreal and Procter & Gamble products. JUMP FACT FILE Frequency monthly Publisher Weider Publications Circulation 350,000 Readership 12- to 17 year old girls Full page colour ad $21,040. CAMPAIGN 30/07/1999 P24 (Back) to felixsalmon.com