SKIRTING THE ISSUES

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Why is it a problem? Mirabella's former artistic director, Sam Shahid, doubled as the owner of an advertising and design agency, Shahid & Co. Valentino, Gucci and Anne Klein were some of its clients. "Mirabella had no problem with my running a business," says Shahid. "They liked it-because I had connections to important advertisers." Says June Weir, who has worked as fashion editor of Women's Wear Daily and executive fashion editor of Bazaar: "I think it's a definite conflict of interest when someone owns a business and is also on staff."

Art directors are not the only ones to work both sides of the fence. A-list fashion editors sometimes work as stylists for a runway show or an advertising campaign. The jobs pay between $2,500 and $3,000 a day. "This is a bad phenomenon, and it's been happening a lot," says Patrick McCarthy, executive editor of Women's Wear Daily, which prohibits the practice. "It pollutes your editorial pages. How can you expect an editor to cover a designer objectively if that editor is also getting a paycheck from him?"

At Conda Nast, only contributors may accept outside assignments. Andra Leon Talley, who was creative director at Vogue, did styling for Versace and John Galliano. He says he was never paid for this work. Brana Wolf, a contributor at Vogue, has worked for Calvin Klein. Though she is not on staff, she exerts an influence: her name appeared on at least one major fashion story in 11 of the past 12 issues. At Harper's Bazaar, fashion director Tonne Goodman, who has worked for Calvin Klein, still does occasional styling for her old boss.

None of this is to say that the Karl Lagerfelds or Donna Karans of this world have not deservedly transformed the way we view, and wear, clothing. Many designers become editors' darlings simply because quality will win out and because anointing new talent is an important part of a fashion magazine's job. Vogue, for example, championed the work of designer John Galliano. Marc Jacobs, Anna Sui and Todd Oldham are among the current crop whose work would be celebrated even if they bought no ads at all.

But many young designers struggle to get their work seen by the more junior fashion editors. "You take them out to lunch. You call them until they come," says Rachel Danes, a partner with her husband Robert Danes, who designs elegant evening dresses. "P.R. people tell us that you have to send free clothes. But they're not paying for it. I own half of this business, and I have to answer to my accountant."