Transworld Skateboarding

Transworld SKATEboarding (also known as TWS) is an international magazine on skateboarding that is based in Carlsbad, California, United States. The publication also runs an accompanying website and video production company. The magazine's 2013 media kit states that "We are the authority. We are artistic. We have legacy." As of May 2013, the publication was owned by the GrindMedia company.

A satellite edition Transworld SKATEboarding Japan is published in Japan.

History

Early years

Founded in 1983, TWS was intended as an a more accessible alternative to Thrasher Magazine. For example, a December 1982 Thrasher article, "Skate and Destroy" written by C. R. Stecyk, III under the pen name "Lowboy", was criticized. In addition a February 1983 advertisement for Independent Trucks, featured a topless female model with the brand's decals displayed on her breasts.

The public release of TransWorld SKATEboarding occurred under the ownership of Peggy Cozens and Larry Balma, owner of the Tracker Trucks brand. Initially, the magazine's editorial teams were known collectively as the "United Skate Front" and Balma later spoke of the magazine’s beginnings as a reaction to Thrasher, explaining in a 2003 Union-Tribune interview: "They were pretty harsh, sex and drugs and using four-letter words and all that and in the early '80s, the sport started growing and [Thrasher] wasn't the best magazine for young kids".