AJC to move to fully digital publication, phase out print Dec. 31
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Thursday said it plans to end its printed edition at the end of this year, accelerating its digital transformation amid a rapidly evolving media landscape.
For the past three years, the AJC has worked to transform the newspaper, which traces its origins back 157 years, into a modern media company, investing millions in new reporting capabilities and technology. That strategy has centered on an ambitious goal to reach 500,000 paid digital subscribers.
President and Publisher Andrew Morse, who has led that charge, said in an interview the company will continue to publish distinctive journalism every day and with urgency on its website, AJC.com, on the AJC mobile app, as well as through video, podcasts and across other digital platforms.
The AJC’s mission to hold the powerful accountable, to inform and entertain millions of Georgians, and to provide advertisers the ability to reach unique audiences will not change, Morse said.
“We will begin the new year as a fully digital organization, committed, as always, to being the most essential and engaging news source for the people of Atlanta, Georgia and the South,” Morse wrote in a letter to subscribers sent Thursday morning.
Accelerating the company’s digital transformation will allow the AJC “to focus every resource and every ounce of energy on producing world-class journalism and delivering it to each of you in the most impactful way,” he wrote in the subscriber letter.
“We spent the past two and a half years investing in our journalism,” Morse said in the interview. “We’ve expanded our business team, we’ve expanded our politics team, we opened new bureaus and (just) as importantly we invested in our product development, analytics, data science, all the capabilities to deliver that journalism effectively.”
Through those investments, the AJC returned to the city with offices in Midtown after years in the suburbs, placed reporters in Athens, Macon and Savannah, launched a new video content team and expanded UATL, a subscriber product dedicated to Atlanta’s influential Black culture.
The AJC’s digital audience far surpasses that of print and has for some time. Ending print, however, will be the biggest change of Morse’s tenure and one that will likely be controversial, particularly among some of the AJC’s longest-tenured subscribers.
Morse said starting Thursday, he and top AJC leaders will contact key civic and business leaders to discuss how the organization will continue to perform its public service mission and serve its commercial customers. Morse said the AJC is also launching a “white glove” customer service effort to ensure longtime print subscribers will know how to access all AJC content digitally.
The AJC is owned by Cox Enterprises, which acquired predecessor newspapers The Atlanta Journal in 1939 and The Atlanta Constitution in 1950. The outlets later merged and started producing a newspaper under a joint masthead in 2001.
Cox has invested millions in the AJC’s digital transformation and said it “remains deeply committed to the AJC’s long-term success.”
“Journalism is critical to our community and society — and so is the way we produce it,” Cox Chairman and CEO Alex Taylor said in a news release. “This change will allow us to reduce the use of trees, plastic, water and carbon, while at the same time increasing our focus on news gathering and public accountability. I’m proud of our team for making these decisions, as much as I will miss the nostalgia of seeing the paper in my driveway every morning.”
‘Not stepping away’
The final print edition will appear Dec. 31, a Wednesday. The AJC currently produces an e-paper, a digital facsimile of the printed edition. A version of that e-edition will continue, Morse said, and be available on the AJC website, app and in subscribers’ email inboxes.
This fall the company will launch an updated version of its mobile app, a customizable launching pad for news, video, podcasts, newsletters, the e-edition and perks for AJC subscribers. The AJC is also investing heavily in the new year in its events business, becoming a convener for important civic conversations.
“We are not stepping away from our readers — we’re stepping forward with them,” AJC editor-in-chief Leroy Chapman said in the release. “Our mission remains unchanged. This is about continuing to build a newsroom that delivers essential journalism smarter, more sustainably, and that serves communities across generations in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.”
The decision to end print was that of AJC leadership and not directed by Cox, Morse said. It will result in the elimination of about 30 full- and part-time jobs involved in designing and distributing the newspaper.
“This decision now is the best thing we can do in order to make sure the AJC is as relevant for the next 157 years as it has been for the last,” Morse said.
Morse, who announced the changes Thursday in a town hall with AJC staff, said the digital-only pivot also reflects changes in media. These changes include how media is consumed and the influence artificial intelligence has on online search, which has reduced web traffic to publishers across the industry.
News outlets can no longer rely on social media companies directing traffic to their websites, either, Morse said.
“The good news for us is our entire strategy over the past two and a half years has been focused on building direct relationships with customers,” Morse said. “… The pressure on the business is only accelerating. The fact that we are growing despite those pressures is a testament to the hard work we’ve done, but we have to put all our effort into the future.”
A number of U.S. cities, big and small, have seen their newspapers close or cut days of print publication or eliminate print altogether. Typically, Morse said, decisions by other outlets to reduce or eliminate print have been solely based on cost savings.
Print is still profitable for the AJC, but it is a shrinking part of the business, he said. The AJC has contemplated reducing or eliminating print before, but leadership previously felt the company’s digital offerings were not strong enough to make such moves.
The timing of Thursday’s announcement, he said, reflects the strength of the AJC’s journalism and digital products, not a need to hit a budget target.
Digital subscriptions are on pace to grow 25% to 35% this year compared to an industry that has seen subscriber growth largely stagnate. Digital revenue is also growing, Morse said.
Print circulation peaked at more than 600,000 about two decades ago. In total, the AJC has about 115,000 subscribers, of whom about 40,000 receive the printed paper.
During the staff town hall, journalists peppered Morse with questions about the business case for cutting print, efforts to retain loyal print subscribers and what the changes will mean for the newsroom, including if other job cuts could come.
“There is not a news organization on the planet right now that is not having to be constantly agile to reinvent themselves,” said Morse, who did not rule out further changes.
This fall, Morse said the AJC will hit the road under its Substance and Soul of the South branding campaign, meeting subscribers and nonsubscribers across the state to highlight the organization’s journalism, the breadth of content and its digital services.
The AJC will also celebrate its print legacy throughout the remainder of the year.
About the Author
J. Scott Trubey is the senior editor over business, climate and environment coverage at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He previously served as a business reporter for the AJC covering banking, real estate and economic development. He joined the AJC in 2010.
