After 157 Years, Atlanta Journal-Constitution to Disband Print Edition

Founded in 1868, just a few years after the city of Atlanta, Georgia, lay in ruins following the Civil War, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC) has announced plans to no longer print a daily print edition effective January 1, 2026. As a result, Atlanta will become the largest metropolitan area in the U.S. without a printed daily newspaper.

The decision to cease the print edition will result in the elimination of about 30 full- and part-time jobs involved in designing and distributing the newspaper. The newspaper had previously closed its own printing facilities in 2021 and reportedly has been outsourcing its printing to a newspaper in Gainesville, Georgia.

A sharp decline from its peak of 630,000 subscribers in 2004, the AJC currently has approximately 40,000 print subscribers, according to a report in The New York Times.

“The entire news industry is being upended by rapidly evolving technology and consumer behavior,” Andrew Morse, president and publisher of the AJC, said in a prepared statement. “We knew this day would come and have been planning for it. Many more people engage with our digital platforms and products today than with our print edition, and that shift is only accelerating. Fully embracing our digital future will ensure our investment in distinctive journalism will have the greatest impact for years to come.

“After 157 years, we did not make this decision lightly; for many of us, reading the paper with our morning coffee is as ingrained in our routine as brushing our teeth or scrambling eggs,” Morse wrote in an explanatory letter to current AJC subscribers. “ … For you, and for us, holding onto the paper can bring a sense of comfort in a world of unrelenting change. But we cannot allow that to hold us back.”

Instead, in the new year, AJC readers will be able to access a daily e-paper edition, the AJC website, or via a customizable app that will be launched later this fall. Morse indicated that the paper’s digital strategy is to reach 500,000 paid digital subscribers in 2026, a sharp increase over the current base of about 115,000 total subscribers.

Aside from investments in its newsroom, the AJC has launched new digital content, including newsletters, podcasts, and videos. It also plans to grow its geographic subscriber base by opening news bureaus in Savannah, Athens, and Macon, Georgia.

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 daily newspaper under a joint masthead in 2001.

Move Away from Print: Sign of the Times

The AJC announcement is just the latest among newspaper publishers, in cities both large and small, which are reducing the frequency or eliminating their print editions.

In February, The Star-Ledger, in Newark, New Jersey, stopped publishing a print edition and closed its Montville, New Jersey, production facility. According to the Star-Ledger’s owner, Newark Morning Ledger Co., the decision was made due to rising costs, decreasing circulation, and reduced demand for print. Similarly, the Charlotte Observer and Tampa Bay Times have reduced the frequency of their print editions, as have several other newspapers across the country.

The Medill Local News Initiative, based at Northwestern University, counted 1,033 daily newspapers in 2024, down from 1,472 in 2005.