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Common questions
When was Slate magazine founded and by whom?
Slate magazine was founded on the 24th of June 1996 by Michael Kinsley. The publication launched under the ownership of Microsoft with the goal of proving that the economics of cyberspace could support serious journalism.
What is the Slate pitches style and when did it become popular?
Slate pitches are ideas that sound wrong or counterintuitive proposed as though they were the tightest logic ever. This style became so distinctive that a Twitter hashtag named #slatepitches emerged in 2009 to track the phenomenon.
How many podcasts does Slate offer and when did they start?
Slate launched its first podcast named Political Gabfest in 2005 and offered a slate of 25 podcasts by 2018. The outlet has earned awards for audio journalism including recognition for Slow Burn and Political Gabfest.
Who owns Slate magazine and when was it purchased?
Slate magazine was purchased by The Washington Post Company in 2004 which later renamed itself Graham Holdings Company. The company launched The Slate Group in 2008 to manage Slate and other online magazines including The Root and The Big Money.
When did Slate become profitable and what paywall system did it introduce?
Slate became profitable by September 2014 after preceding years had seen layoffs and falling ad revenue. The magazine introduced a paywall system called Slate Plus in 2014 and moved all content behind a metered paywall for international readers in June 2015.
Who are the editors of Slate magazine and when did they serve?
Slate (magazine)
On the 24th of June 1996, a digital experiment began that would fundamentally alter how Americans consumed news. Michael Kinsley, a former speechwriter for Vice President Al Gore, launched Slate under the ownership of Microsoft with a singular, audacious goal: to prove that the economics of cyberspace could support serious journalism. At a time when the internet was largely viewed as a novelty or a library, Kinsley envisioned a publication that utilized hyperlinks and direct communication between writers and readers to create a dynamic, living newspaper. The site received massive traffic from the MSN network, establishing itself as an early pioneer of digital journalism. By 1998, Slate had introduced a paywall-based business model that attracted up to 20,000 subscribers, a bold move for the era, though it was eventually abandoned. The outlet achieved a profitable quarter in 2003 and broke even in 2004 with 6 million in revenue from 6 million monthly readers, proving that a digital-only magazine could survive in a market dominated by print giants.
The Contrarian Brand
Since 2006, the publication has cultivated a reputation for publishing pieces that argue against commonly held views, a style that gave rise to the term Slate pitches. The Columbia Journalism Review defined these pitches as ideas that sound wrong or counterintuitive proposed as though they were the tightest logic ever. This approach became so distinctive that a Twitter hashtag, #slatepitches, emerged in 2009 to track the phenomenon. In 2014, then editor-in-chief Julia Turner acknowledged that this reputation for counterintuitive arguments formed part of the brand, even as she argued that the hashtag misrepresented the site's actual journalism. However, the strategy faced challenges in the polarizing political climate of the Trump administration, and by 2022, anonymous staffers felt the publication's reputation for contrarian views had diminished. Former writer Matthew Yglesias concurred with reports suggesting the journalism industry had become more homogeneous, leaving the once-sharp edge of the magazine somewhat blunted.
The Audio Revolution
Slate has been involved in podcasts almost from the very beginning of the medium, launching its first podcast, Political Gabfest, in 2005. Inspired by the magazine's editorial conference calls, the show originally ran for 15 minutes, but by 2012, most episodes had expanded to 45 minutes. By June 2012, the outlet had expanded its lineup to 19 podcasts, with Political Gabfest and Culture Gabfest standing out as the most popular. This count had shrunk to 14 by February 2015, yet all received 6 million downloads per month. In 2018, the company offered a slate of 25 podcasts, demonstrating a commitment to audio that led to high advertisement and sell-through rates. The investment in audio has been so significant that it has earned awards, including recognition for Slow Burn and Political Gabfest, cementing the magazine's status as a leader in the audio journalism space.
Michael Kinsley served as the first editor-in-chief from 1996 to 2002 followed by Jacob Weisberg from 2002 to 2008. Hillary Frey was named the magazine's new editor-in-chief in May 2022 after Jared Hohlt took the role on the 1st of April 2019.
In 2004, the magazine was purchased by The Washington Post Company, which later renamed itself Graham Holdings Company. An agreement in the purchase stipulated that the MSN website would continue to redirect to Slate, ensuring the digital legacy remained intact. In 2008, The Washington Post Company launched The Slate Group, an online publishing entity to manage Slate and other online magazines, including The Root, an African American news site, and The Big Money, a business news website. The company switched its content management system from Gutenberg to Adobe CQ5 in 2011, a technical overhaul that coincided with the layoff of several high-profile journalists, including co-founder Jack Shafer and Timothy Noah, the author of the Chatterbox column. At the time, the magazine had around 40 full-time editorial staff, a number that fluctuated as the company navigated the changing media landscape.
The Paywall Evolution
By 2014, it was estimated that the website had 30 million visitors monthly, and the company introduced a paywall system called Slate Plus, offering ad-free podcasts and bonus materials. A year later, it had attracted 9,000 subscribers, generating about 500,000 in annual revenue. By September 2014, Slate became profitable after preceding years had seen layoffs and falling ad revenue. The magazine then moved all content behind a metered paywall for international readers in June 2015, attributing the change to advertisers targeting domestic readers. In 2018, Slate staff members joined the Writers Guild of America, East, and after union members authorized a strike, the company agreed to a three-year collective bargaining agreement in January 2019. This shift marked a transition from a purely ad-supported model to a hybrid system that included a membership model with a metered paywall.
The Controversial Edge
On the 7th of June 2001, Slate published an article by Jay Forman claiming that fishermen from an island in the Florida Keys were fishing for rhesus monkeys. The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times found the claim to be a hoax after investigation, and Forman later admitted to his editor, Jack Shafer, that his claim had been fabricated. This incident, known as Monkeyfishing, highlighted the risks of the magazine's contrarian approach. Despite such controversies, the outlet has received significant acclaim, including the National Magazine Award for General Excellence in 2003, 2011, and 2016. Between 2009 and 2014, Slate was nominated for an NMA 14 times, winning the award twice. The magazine's investment in podcasts has led to receiving some awards, including Slow Burn and Political Gabfest, proving that even with occasional stumbles, the publication has maintained high-quality editorial standards.
The Leadership Legacy
Michael Kinsley served as the first editor-in-chief from 1996 to 2002, followed by Jacob Weisberg, who held the position from 2002 to 2008. David Plotz became editor until July 2014, when he was replaced by Julia Turner. After Turner resigned in 2019 to join the Los Angeles Times, Jared Hohlt became editor on the 1st of April 2019. In May 2022, former HuffPost editor Hillary Frey was named as the magazine's new editor-in-chief. The staff has included notable contributors such as Anne Applebaum, John Dickerson, Simon Doonan, and Dahlia Lithwick, among many others. In 2021, Mike Pesca, host of the podcast The Gist, was suspended from Slate after a Slack discussion on Donald G. McNeil Jr. and the usage of a racial slur, ultimately parting ways and taking his podcast independent. This leadership turnover reflects the dynamic and often turbulent nature of the magazine's history.
The Global Expansion
In February 2009, slate.fr, a French-language offshoot of Slate, was launched. Its five founders were Le Monde editors Jean-Marie Colombani, Libération and 20 minutes editor, Les Echos editor, and political advisor Jacques Attali. The founders held 50 percent in the publishing company, while The Washington Post Company held 15 percent. In 2011, slate.fr started a separate site covering African news, Slate Afrique, with a Paris-based editorial staff. This expansion demonstrated the magazine's ambition to reach beyond the United States, adapting its model to different cultural contexts. The international presence added a layer of complexity to the organization, requiring careful navigation of different media landscapes and reader expectations. Despite these challenges, the global expansion contributed to the magazine's reputation as a forward-thinking publication that could adapt to new markets.