'Atlanta Journal-Constitution' CEO steps down as bold goals yield to tough realities - BERITAJA

Andrew Morse is stepping down arsenic patient and main executive of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution adjacent month. Morse had aimed to execute 500,000 paying integer subscribers by the extremity of 2026. He now says the extremity is attainable, but will return much time. Paras Griffin/Getty Images

Paras Griffin/Getty Images

Andrew Morse had helped usher ABC, Bloomberg and CNN into the integer age. In January 2023, he turned his sights connected Atlanta, pinch a $150 cardinal scheme to reinvent its starring regular newspaper.

In taking the reins of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Morse group an eager goal: to turn the number of integer subscribers from 53,000 to a half-million by the extremity of 2026. He laid retired a caller strategy, pinch caller contented and an infusion of caller energy. The insubstantial abandoned people astatine the extremity of past twelvemonth to spell all-in connected integer innovation. The scheme truthful acold has achieved humble results: 101,000 integer subscribers.

Morse acknowledges falling short, but says the insubstantial yet will scope what he calls its "North Star." Morse won't beryllium location erstwhile it happens. After about 3 and a half years, he says it's clip for him to measurement aside.

"We person been connected a awesome travel pinch the AJC ... trying to toggle shape a really proud, storied regular newspaper into a modern media company," Morse tells BERITAJA. "The determination for maine is really bittersweet."

Morse says family concerns drove his choice: "I've been surviving successful Atlanta for 3 years, but my family lives successful New York, truthful I've been commuting. I needed to make a difficult individual determination to make a change."

He will beryllium replaced by Paul Curran, a elder advertizing executive pinch Cox Media, a associated task successful which the newspaper's genitor institution retains a ample number stake, the institution said. The assignment takes afloat effect June 29.

A intimately watched experiment

Morse's effort has been intimately watched arsenic bequest newspapers travel nether expanding financial accent and acquisition immense consolidation. The awesome players person expanded their holdings; Corporate owners Gannett and Lee Enterprises, and backstage equity costs Alden Global Capital and Chatham Asset Management are among those that person relentlessly trim costs astatine papers crossed the country.

Block Communications had announced it would permanently unopen down the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on May 3; the insubstantial enjoyed a last-minute reprieve, sold past period to the nonprofit institute that created the online Baltimore Banner. But the section news guild says that the caller owners person trim 40% of the newsroom, including the immense mostly of those who served arsenic national organizers during an extended labour dispute.

Cox Enterprises, the Journal-Constitution's genitor company, says it remains 100% committed to the paper's ngo of providing high-quality publicity for Atlanta and the South.

The institution is controlled by the Cox family, owners of the Journal since 1939 and the Constitution since 1950. (They were fully merged successful 2001.) Cox sold disconnected each their different papers, past bought backmost the Dayton Daily News and 2 different Ohio papers. Alex Taylor, Cox Enterprises' CEO and chairman, is the great-grandson of Ohio Gov. James Cox, who founded the institution successful 1898.

The Journal-Constitution has been losing money for years. But earlier joining the AJC, arsenic it's known, Morse convinced the Cox family of the paper's continued imaginable and the request to put superior money to group it connected a way to sustainability. The family has the reserves to subsidize their hometown paper: it earned billions from investments successful cablegram tv systems, broadband internet, car sales, and different ventures.

Morse, who had spent important clip successful Atlanta during his years pinch CNN, had been the designer of the cablegram network's integer strategy and the brief-lived CNN+, which was killed disconnected soon aft its motorboat by caller firm owners. Morse near soon after.

CNN Chairman and CEO Mark Thompson this twelvemonth started a caller integer level built about insights related to Morse's plans for the network's integer strategy.

Under Morse's leadership, the Journal-Constitution renewed its earlier liking successful matters beyond the metro region, establishing a greater beingness successful different Georgia cities wherever regular publicity had declined aliases withered. It distributed its printed copies successful those cities to marketplace the return of the AJC.

He has been an ebullient champion of the insubstantial and caller forms for its journalism. The insubstantial has scrapped geographic-based thumps for taxable sum beyond section region borders. It has besides invested successful creating newsletters, podcasts and societal media posts alongside much accepted reporting teams. More than half of the AJC's 320 staffers are portion of its newsroom, Morse says. And their efforts person been recognized, about precocious pinch its first Peabody award, for social media video coverage of ICE efforts successful Georgia.

Shereta Williams, the executive vice president of maturation operations astatine Cox Enterprises, tells BERITAJA that the AJC had been down the curve successful seeking a integer path. Morse changed each that, she says.

"We were chiefly still operating arsenic a people newspaper erstwhile he sewage there," Williams says.

Andrew Morse, the patient and president of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, stands earlier a mural advertizing the newspaper successful 2024. David Folkenflik/BERITAJA

David Folkenflik/BERITAJA

"It's the translator of the team, really we operate, and reinvigorating the brand," Williams said. "The full statement understands what it intends to beryllium a digital-first operation. It is now focused connected 'How do we turn arsenic accelerated arsenic possible?' And we are doing it crossed divisions."

She says she doesn't cognize really soon the insubstantial will attain financial sustainability. "It'll return america different fewer years, but we spot it wrong sight," she says. "We are connected a way to growth. It was difficult to find a way to maturation pinch print."

The largest U.S. metropolis without a awesome printed newspaper

Atlanta is now the largest metro region successful the state without a awesome printed newspaper.

Over the people of past year, the insubstantial planned a historical pivot. Then, connected January 1, it dispensed pinch its people version altogether, Atlanta is now the largest metro region successful the state without a awesome printed newspaper. (The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J., a larger paper, ceased publication of people editions successful February 2025, on pinch sister papers successful Jersey City and Trenton. Their owners, Advance Communications, support a sizable mixed newsroom astatine NJ.com.)

"It was a large bet for Cox," says manufacture expert Ken Doctor, who has precocious group up integer news startups successful Santa Cruz, Calif., and Eugene, Ore. "It points to the anticipation of a important failure. And knowing it is really important for them."

That said, Doctor says he is not penning disconnected the AJC's chances, aliases moreover Morse's approach.

"It could beryllium that it's a bully strategy, but it's going to return much clip for it to work."

On that, astatine least, Morse agrees.

"We group a very eager goal," Morse says. "It's still very achievable based connected the size of this marketplace and the gait of our growth. What's changed is the timing."

Morse says it took much effort than expected to build up the activity squad and analytical devices to move goals into strategies and strategies into success.

He besides points to societal media platforms' turning distant from promoting news, and the explosive usage of AI platforms to find information. Both person led to crisp drops successful referrals to news websites. The arena is called "Google Zero" — arsenic in, Google is prompting adjacent to zero users to click links to the original reporting.

"There's a agelong measurement to go," Morse says. "The verdict isn't in. But we'll get there."