Running a great magazine is hard. So is turning a money-losing magazine into a profit center.
Nicholas Thompson has done both. The CEO of The Atlantic took the job in 2021, when it was gushing red ink and slashing its workforce. Today it’s profitable, boasts 1.6 million subscribers, and revenue that Thompson says is “much bigger” than $100 million — the number it last reported in 2023.
Thompson has the advantage of a very deep-pocketed owner — Laurene Powell Jobs, who is worth a reported $15 billion — and a very talented editor. Under editor in chief Jeffrey Goldberg’s watch, the Atlantic has become a consistent source of must-read pieces.
But…
