The Atlantic is an American magazine, founded (as The Atlantic Monthly) in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1857. It was created as a literary and cultural commentary magazine. It quickly achieved a national reputation, which it has held for more than 150 years. It was important for recognizing and publishing new writers and poets, and encouraging major careers. It published leading writers' commentary on abolition, education, and other major issues in contemporary political affairs.
After financial hardship and a series of ownership changes, the format changed to a general editorial magazine. Focusing on "foreign affairs, politics, and the economy cultural trends," it is primarily aimed at a target audience of "thought leaders."
The magazine's founders were a group of prominent writers of national reputation, who included Harriet Beecher Stowe, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., John Greenleaf Whittier and James Russell Lowell. Lowell was its first editor. James Bennet was named the fourteenth editor-in-chief in 2006. Jay Lauf joined the organization as publisher and vice-president in 2008.
In 2010, The Atlantic posted its first profit in the last decade. In profiling the publication at the time, The New York Times noted the accomplishment was the result of "a cultural transfusion, a dose of counterintuition and a lot of digital advertising revenue."
Read more about The Atlantic: Format, Frequency and Name, Literary History, Ownership, The Atlantic Wire, The Atlantic Cities, List of Editors