Laurene Powell Jobs is expanding her interests in the media business.
The Emerson Collective, a non-profit overseen by the widow of Apple founder Steve Jobs, is buying a majority stake in The Atlantic. The publication, which focuses on literature, culture, and politics, will remain based in Washington, D.C., said current owner David Bradley.
“What I loved about Laurene from the first is that her confidence was forged on a different coast,” said Bradley in a note to staff announcing the move. “And, if anything, her ambition is greater than my own.”
Bradley, who has been the sole owner of The Atlantic since 1999, will retain a minority ownership and continue as chairman and operating partner for at least the next three years. Eventually, he says, he expects Emerson to assume full ownership of the publication.
This isn’t Powell Jobs’ first swim in the media waters. Emerson Collective previously invested in Axios, an online news site launched earlier this year by the co-founder of Politico. The group also bought News Corp.’s digital education business Amplify in 2015.
Bradley says the impetus to sell the magazine and its digital properties came when he and his wife realized their children had no interest in continuing their media legacy. Meetings with Powell Jobs began in January.
Not included in the deal are other holdings of Atlantic Media, such as National Journal Group, Government Executive Media Group, and Quartz.
