Getting offended on behalf of others is controversial in general, but in this case it's plain silly.
URL: subscription.economist.com/Magazine/Subscribe
www.economist.com/about-the-economist
> Frequently asked questions
> Why does The Economist call itself a newspaper?
> [...] By the time the transformation from newspaper to magazine format had been completed, the habit of referring to ourselves as “this newspaper” had stuck.
The Economist is in fact a newspaper.
Edit: do people think this is a snobby comment? The Economist maintains this despite publishing in a medium which looks like a magazine.