The Nation

What The Nation does

The Nation is a progressive political and cultural magazine founded in 1865 and operated as The Nation Company LLC, headquartered at 520 Eighth Avenue in New York. It publishes a print magazine 12 times per year and operates a digital subscription product at thenation.com, with a globally accessible website offering politics, world, economy, culture, and books & arts coverage, full archives, and an unspecified number of free articles per month before a paywall.

The company's product surface extends well beyond the magazine itself. It runs six branded podcasts (American Prestige, Tech Won't Save Us, Contempt of Court, Start Making Sense, Time of Monsters, and Edge of Sports), an email newsletter suite including the Nation Weekly digest, and ancillary membership programs such as the Nation Wine Club, Nation Shop, Nation Cruise, and Nation Travels. Its technology footprint is conventional media infrastructure: a WordPress-style website, a self-service subscription portal at subscriptions.thenation.com, mobile apps, customer-service phone/email support, and distribution on Apple News, Flipboard, SmartNews, Substack, and Bluesky.

The business model is a hybrid reader-support model. Recurring revenue comes from print and digital subscriptions; donations and major gifts via tiered programs (Publisher's Circle $1,000+, Leadership Circle $5,000+, President's Circle $25,000+); planned giving through a Legacy Society (bequests, IRA rollovers, stock gifts); display advertising on the site and in print; and product/affiliate revenue from Wine Club, Shop, Cruise, and Travels. The customer base is a long-tail of progressive readers, with no disclosed enterprise customers and no evidence of institutional investor ownership or M&A activity.

Name

The Nation

Legal name

The Nation Company LLC

Website

https://thenation.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1865

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Nation is a privately held, New York-based progressive political and cultural magazine founded in 1865, publishing 12 print issues per year alongside a digital subscription, six podcasts, email newsletters, and ancillary lifestyle programs, funded by subscriptions, donations, and advertising.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

News & Political Media Publishing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (51312), Periodical Publishers (513120)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

News, Politics & Current Affairs Magazines (MPAJAEAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Politics, Current Affairs & Social Commentary Publishing (MPAJAAAM)

Keywords

• Progressive journalism
• Print magazine publishing
• Digital news subscription
• Political commentary
• Reader-funded media

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Print and Digital Subscriptions: Subscription revenue from print magazine and digital access to thenation.com. The Nation publishes 12 issues per year, with subscriptions offering full access to archives and digital content.
2. Donations and Major Gifts: Reader donations and major gift programs including Publisher's Circle ($1,000+), Leadership Circle ($5,000+), President's Circle ($25,000+), and monthly giving programs.
3. Advertising: Display advertising and sponsored content on thenation.com and in the print magazine.
4. Product Sales: Revenue from The Nation Wine Club, The Nation Shop (store), Nation Travels, and Nation Cruise programs.
5. Planned Giving and Legacy Gifts: Bequests, retirement account beneficiary designations, charitable IRA rollovers, and stock gifts through the Legacy Society planned giving program.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Nation is a progressive political and cultural weekly magazine published in print (12 issues per year) and digital formats, offering investigative journalism, political analysis, and cultural commentary through thenation.com, a full archive, podcasts, and newsletters. Reader-supported via subscriptions, donations, and tiered giving programs, it also operates ancillary commerce offerings including a wine club, online shop, cruise, and travel programs.

Product overview

The Nation is a progressive political and cultural magazine founded in 1865, now operated as The Nation Company LLC. Its primary offerings include a print magazine published 12 times per year and comprehensive digital subscriptions providing full website access and archives. The publication supplements its core editorial products with six branded podcasts (American Prestige, Tech Won't Save Us, Contempt of Court, Start Making Sense, Time of Monsters, and Edge of Sports), email newsletters including the Nation Weekly digest, and membership programs. Ancillary offerings include The Nation Wine Club, Shop, Cruise, and Travels programs, as well as planned giving options through its Legacy Society. Donor recognition tiers include Publishers Circle ($1,000+), Leadership Circle ($5,000+), and Presidents Circle ($25,000+).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Nation Fund: A fund supporting The Nation's journalism and operations.
• Nation Wine Club
• Nation Travels
• Nation Cruise

Products and services

• The Nation Magazine (Print) A progressive political and cultural magazine published 12 times per year, covering politics, world affairs, economy, culture, books, and the arts, for individual readers and subscribers.
• The Nation Digital Subscription
• American Prestige Podcast A weekly podcast covering politics and current affairs with in-depth analysis and interviews, for progressive listeners.
• Tech Won't Save Us Podcast A podcast critically examining technology's role in society and politics, hosted by Paris Marx for progressive listeners.
• Contempt of Court Podcast A podcast focused on Supreme Court coverage and legal analysis hosted by Elie Mystal, for progressive legal commentary audiences.
• Time of Monsters Podcast A podcast hosted by Jeet Heer covering political analysis and commentary for progressive audiences.
• The Nation Wine Club A membership program offering wines delivered directly to members, with proceeds supporting The Nation's journalism, for wine enthusiast readers.
• The Nation Shop Online store selling back issues, merchandise, and branded items with proceeds supporting journalism, for readers and supporters.
• The Nation Cruise Annual cruise events bringing together Nation readers, journalists, and intellectuals for travel and discussion.
• Nation Travels Curated travel adventures and trips organized by The Nation for engaged readers, with proceeds supporting journalism.
• Legacy Society (Planned Giving) Charitable estate planning options including bequests, retirement account beneficiaries, stock gifts, and charitable IRA rollovers, for major donors and estate planners.
• Publisher's Circle (Donor Program) Annual giving circle with donations of $1,000 or more, offering complimentary subscription, recognition, 'Off the Record' newsletter, donor newsletter, and quarterly briefings with editors, for major donors.
• Leadership Circle (Donor Program) Annual giving circle with donations of $5,000 or more, offering invitation to visit NYC headquarters and dedicated development staff for customer service, for major donors.
• President's Circle (Donor Program) Top-tier giving circle with annual donations of $25,000 or more, offering special publisher/editor updates, complimentary subscription, recognition, shop discounts, and quarterly briefings with editors, for top-tier major donors.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• The American Prospect: A liberal political magazine covering policy, politics, and progressive ideas. Comparable as a donor/subscription-supported policy publication serving an ideologically aligned, politically engaged audience.
• In These Times: A progressive magazine focused on labor, economics, and politics, published since 1976. Comparable in progressive editorial positioning, magazine format, and reader-supported funding model.
• Mother Jones: Investigative progressive magazine and nonprofit news organization producing long-form journalism on politics, environment, and social justice. Comparable in donor-supported model, progressive editorial stance, and multi-platform distribution.
• The New Republic: Centrist-to-progressive magazine covering politics, culture, and ideas with a print and digital subscription model. Comparable as a political opinion magazine targeting a politically engaged, educated audience.
• Dissent Magazine: A progressive quarterly magazine of politics and culture founded in 1954. Comparable as a long-running progressive publication with print and digital editions, covering politics, culture, and ideas.
• Jacobin: A socialist quarterly magazine and digital publication covering politics, economics, and culture from a left perspective. Comparable in progressive editorial stance, print+digital format, and subscription-based revenue.
• Harper's Magazine: One of America's oldest general-interest monthly magazines, featuring long-form journalism, essays, fiction, and cultural commentary. Comparable as a heritage print magazine with subscription model and politically engaged readership.
• The Progressive: A long-running progressive political magazine founded in 1909, publishing on politics, culture, and world affairs. Highly comparable in editorial positioning, audience, subscription model, and print+digital format to The Nation.

Broad incumbents

• The Atlantic: A major American magazine covering politics, culture, and ideas across print, digital, and podcasts. Comparable in multi-format long-form journalism and politically engaged readership, but operates at significantly larger scale and more centrist positioning.

Emerging players

• The Intercept: A digital-first investigative publication covering politics, civil liberties, and national security from a left perspective. Comparable in progressive editorial stance and donor-supported model, though it lacks The Nation's long print heritage.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/THENATION
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/thenation
• Facebookfacebook.com/TheNationMagazine
• Instagraminstagram.com/nationmag
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-nation

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Nation