That's the problem with these publications. They often trivialize the information they impart. If they don't get it just plain wrong. (Is the New Yorker any better than blogs or wikis or the New York Times?)

I consider Labov more of a sociolinguist than a dialect specialist, but, yes there are others: Deborah Tannen (and, to a lesser extent, her advisor, Robin Lakoff) pops to mind.

Ceci n'est pas un seing.