Atlantic Magazine Seeks New CEO As Laurene Powell Jobs Strengths Commitment to Journalism
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Laurene Powell Jobs via Wiki Commons
On Wednesday night, Atlantic Media chairman David Bradley sent a memo announcing that he’ll remain chairman but will step away from executive responsibilities following the selection of a new president/CEO for The Atlantic. He said he’ll continue to help where useful, in areas such as “recruiting, retention, matters of culture” and “Washington entertaining,” writes Politico.
David Bradley speaking at the 2013 San Diego Comic Con International, for "Doctor Who", at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, California. Image via Gage Skidmore
Bradley bought the 162-year-old media institution in 1999, moving it from Boston to Washington, where it became a fixture among the political and media elites. The memo — expected since the July 2017 announcement of the purchase of The Atlantic by Laurene Powell Jobs’ Emerson Collective. At the time AOC reported the sale, Bradley expected to continue as chairman operating partner for three to five years, with Emerson Collective moving to increase its ownership of The Atlantic from 70 percent to 100 percent with five years.
In Wednesday’s memo, Bradley said his minority ownership of The Atlantic would continue for at least five years from the date of the 2017 sale, “but maybe longer.” Bradley characterized his partnership with Powell Jobs as “uncommonly happy” and a “pure privilege.”
While she isn’t seen frequently at The Atlantic, Powell Jobs has added more than 100 employees — 50 in the newsroom alone — since 2017. The magazine is no longer profitable, according to WSJ, but The Atlantic is instituting a paywall.
Besides The Atlantic, Powell Jobs’ seeks to make further investments in journalism, writes Vox Recode.. Her Emerson Collective, described by C Net as “equal parts think tank, foundation and venture capital fund”, has also acquired majority stakes in Axios and Pop-Up Magazine Productions. Add on large stakes in several Hollywood production companies like Concordia Studio, Anonymous Content and Macro. It has also invested in podcast maker Gimlet Media. Emerson Collective is equally committed to nonprofit journalism organizations , including ProPublica, Mother Jones, Marshall Project, Committee to Protect Journalists and the Texas Observer.
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