Actually I find the magazine thing very sad. I have been a freelance contributor to various magazines in a variety of fields since the early 1980s.
I do not think there are many who set out to be devious, I suspect that the low population in NZ, in particular, makes publishing barely viable at best. My dear old Mum, who wrote historical novels till the day of her death, struggled to get them published, even after winning Mansfield awards et al.
My gut feeling is that the best intentioned enthusiasts are really in the wrong part of the world to get their enthusiasms on the market for any significant time. The list of failed publications is probably extensive. I have spent quite a bit on subscriptions for mags which have failed. Historic Driver, Tarmac are just a couple which spring to mind. I wonder what happens to that pool of money? In remoter areas where I live there are few chances to peruse the mags at the bookshops, they only carry the mainline mags, no wonder I pursue the mags which fail. On a "per issue" basis I spend way too much!