GOOD CHEER: There were relatively few fashion titles among the finalists for the 44th annual National Magazine Awards, but among the lucky nominees were GQ, outdoing its own record with eight spots; W, with three, and Vogue and Glamour, with one each. The usual heavyweights dominated the overall list of finalists: The New Yorker had 10 nominations, and New York magazine and Esquire managed six and five, respectively.

GQ was a finalist for general excellence, twice in the reporting category, feature writing, design, photo portfolio, photography and profile writing. W’s nominations came for general excellence, photography and photo portfolio; Vogue was nominated for general excellence, and, as a finalist in the Essays category, Glamour found itself in the somewhat unusual company of The Antioch Review, Backpacker, Harper’s Magazine, and The New Yorker.

Food magazines or food-related work captured 12 nominations over nine categories. Bon Appetit’s four nominations — double that of oft-awarded corporate sibling and rival Gourmet — were a vote of confidence for its redesign last year, and a particular coup given the magazine hasn’t been a finalist in five years and has won only once, in 1996.

GQ’s two reporting finalists were both penned by Sean Flynn. Also in that category is Ryan Lizza’s New Yorker story on President Barack Obama’s rise through Illinois politics — at the time overshadowed by the flap over that issue’s satirical cover illustration of Obama and his wife. Esquire will also face off against itself in the Leisure Interests category, both times for food writing, as well as against The New Yorker, whose shopping columns by Patricia Marx got the nod.

Best Life’s nomination for magazine section, its second time making finalist since launching five years ago, came too late: Rodale shuttered the title last week.

— Irin Carmon