Founded by abolitionists, this magazine has survived 160 years of controversy and financial struggle.

Ideas & Philosophy · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Since 1865, The Nation has served as a persistent, often polarizing voice in American politics. From its origins as an abolitionist successor to its modern role as a progressive flagship, the magazine has navigated McCarthy-era bans, internal ideological shifts, and a perpetual reliance on donor support to remain in print.

Established in Manhattan on July 6, 1865, by a group of abolitionists including Frederick Law Olmsted, The Nation was designed to provide critical, moderate discussion of legal and constitutional questions. Its first editor, Edwin Lawrence Godkin, sought to create an organ of opinion that prioritized causes over party loyalty. In its early years, the publication championed civil service reform, sound national currency, and free trade, while documenting the realities of the Reconstruction era in the South.

The magazine's ideological trajectory shifted significantly under the ownership of Oswald Garrison Villard, who moved it toward isolationism and racial equality. By the 1930s, under editor Freda Kirchwey, the publication embraced the New Deal and adopted a more explicitly leftist stance. This evolution drew intense scrutiny; during the Second Red Scare, the magazine faced censorship, including being banned from school libraries in Newark and New York City. Despite these pressures, it maintained a unique editorial independence, supporting American intervention in World War II and even the use of the atomic bomb, while simultaneously reporting on the Holocaust when few other outlets did.

Financial instability has been a defining feature of the magazine's history, with the publication losing money in all but three or four years of its existence. To survive, it has relied on a dedicated base of donors known as Nation Associates—now Nation Builders—who provide 30% of its revenue. Today, the magazine continues to balance its legacy as a literary and political institution with the challenges of the digital age, recently appointing Jacobin founder Bhaskar Sunkara as president to foster a coalition between liberalism and socialism.

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