The Nation

• 1. Abolitionist Origins And Founding

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  The Nation magazine opened its doors on the 6th of July 1865, at 130 Nassau Street in Manhattan. This date marked the end of William Lloyd Garrison's The Liberator and the beginning of a new era for progressive journalism. Frederick Law Olmsted, the landscape architect who designed Central Park, led a group of abolitionists to create this successor publication. Edwin Lawrence Godkin, an Irish immigrant and former correspondent for London Daily News, became the first editor. Wendell Phillips Garrison, son of William Lloyd Garrison, served as Literary Editor from 1865 until 1906. He utilized his father's vast network of contacts to build the magazine's early influence. Joseph H. Richards acted as founding publisher while Godkin shaped editorial direction. The magazine pledged to discuss legal, economic, and constitutional questions with greater accuracy than daily newspapers. It promised not to be the organ of any party but to wage war against violence and exaggeration in political writing. In its first year, John Richard Dennett toured the war-torn South under the feature titled The South as It Is. Dennett interviewed Confederate veterans, freed slaves, and agents of the Freedmen's Bureau during that journey.

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• 2. Editorial Evolution And Political Shifts

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  Henry Villard acquired The Nation in 1881 and converted it into a weekly literary supplement for his New York Evening Post. The offices moved to 210 Broadway where they remained for decades. Oswald Garrison Villard inherited both publications in 1900 and sold the Evening Post in 1918. He remade The Nation into a current affairs publication with an anti-classical liberal orientation. By 1932, the magazine urged readers to vote for Socialist Party candidate Norman Thomas instead of Hoover or Roosevelt. Oswald Villard wrote that voting for either major party candidate meant throwing away one's vote. He later endorsed Franklin D. Roosevelt in three consecutive elections after initially opposing him. Maurice Wertheim bought the magazine from Villard in 1935 before selling it again in 1937. Freda Kirchwey became editor from 1933 until 1955 and transformed the publication further leftward. She welcomed the New Deal and supported nationalization of industries, reversing traditional definitions of liberalism. Albert Jay Nock once published a column criticizing Samuel Gompers and trade unions which led to brief suspension from US mail delivery.

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• 3. Cold War Controversies And Censorship

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  Freda Kirchwey sold her individual ownership in 1943 due to financial problems and created Nation Associates as a nonprofit organization. This group funded operations while Kirchwey served as both president and editor. During World War II, The Nation called for US entry before Pearl Harbor and supported American intervention even before Operation Barbarossa. It also supported use of atomic bombs on Hiroshima unlike other leftist publications following Stalinist lines. In the 1950s, critics labeled the magazine pro-communist because of its advocacy of détente with Joseph Stalin's Soviet Union. Louis Fischer resigned claiming foreign coverage was too pro-Soviet despite Diana Trilling contributing anti-Soviet material to arts sections. McCarthyism brought bans from school libraries in New York City and Newark. A librarian named Ruth Brown lost her job in Bartlesville Oklahoma after citizens complained about shelf space given to The Nation. George C. Kirstein replaced Kirchwey as owner in 1955 then James J. Storrow Jr bought it in 1965. Paul Blanshard served as special correspondent in Uzbekistan during the decade writing articles attacking Catholic Church power.

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• 4. Modern Financial Challenges And Restructuring

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  Hamilton Fish V organized a group that purchased The Nation from the Strow family in 1977. Arthur L. Carter acquired it in 1985 after making his fortune at Carter Berlind Potoma & Weill. Victor Navasky became publisher in 1996 while Katrina vanden Heuvel succeeded him as editor in 1995. Circulation peaked at 187,000 copies in 2006 before dropping to 145,000 print copies by 2010. Digital subscriptions rose to over 15,000 though total circulation reached only 96,000 combined by 2021. Print advertising declined five percent between 2009 and 2010 while digital ads grew thirty-two point eight percent. Advertising accounts for ten percent of revenue while circulation totals sixty percent. Nation Associates provides thirty percent of total revenue through donations exceeding subscription fees. More than 30,000 donors participate in what is now called Nation Builders program. An annual cruise generates two hundred thousand dollars annually for operations. In December 2023 Bhaskar Sunkara announced switching from biweekly to monthly publication format. Jacobin founder Sunkara became president on the 23rd of February 2022.

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• 5. Cultural Impact And Poetry Debates

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  The magazine has published significant American poetry including works by Hart Crane Eli Siegel Elizabeth Bishop Adrienne Rich W.S. Merwin Pablo Neruda Denise Levertov and Derek Walcott since its creation. In 2018 Anders Carlson-Wee wrote a poem titled How-To using black vernacular in the voice of a homeless man. White writer Carlson-Wee faced criticism from Roxane Gay regarding his use of that dialect. Poetry editors Stephanie Burt and Carmen Giménez Smith issued an apology making it first such action ever taken by The Nation. Katha Pollitt called the apology craven comparing it to reeducation camp letters. Grace Schulman served as poetry editor from 1971 until 2006 writing that the apology represented disturbing departure from artistic freedom traditions. The magazine celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2015 with documentary film by Barbara Kopple and special issue featuring Eric Foner Noam Chomsky E.L. Doctorow Toni Morrison Rebecca Solnit and Vivian Gornick. President Barack Obama praised the publication's history in tribute published within that anniversary issue.

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• 6. Presidential Endorsements And Political Legacy

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  On eve of 1968 election The Nation argued choice between Nixon and Humphrey was so bad voters should stay home entirely. the 14th of January 2016 saw endorsement of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders for president calling their movement insurgency possibility dream bending arc toward justice. the 2nd of March 2020 brought another Sanders endorsement describing him standing clearly on hinge of history redeeming democracy restoring republic. the 15th of June 2019 marked stepping down of editor Katrina vanden Heuvel replaced by D.D. Guttenplan. the 23rd of September 2024 featured endorsement of Kamala Harris despite criticism regarding foreign politics especially Gaza war situation. the 25th of October 2024 article written by interns criticized that same endorsement following Donald Trump victory attributing result to anti-system politics support among American society. The magazine drew parallels between Harris campaign and Hillary Clinton's 2016 effort after election results became clear. Regular columns include Beneath Radar Deadline Poet Diary Mad Law Professor Liberal Media Subject Debate Between Lines looking out Sister Citizen Beat Devil Dispatches Minority Report cryptic crossword puzzles spanning decades.

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