Parnote - I wonder if something like htdig-web would make it easier to do this job?
The ht://Dig system is a complete world wide web indexing and searching system for a small domain or intranet. It is meant to cover the search needs for a single company, campus, or even a particular sub section of a web site.
It should be easy enough to install and run. It should even help reduce the work load of the magazine crew in the long run. Just an idea, what do you think?