The Progressive (U.S.)

The Progressive (U.S.)
Title	The Progressive
Category	Political magazine
Frequency	Monthly
Publisher	The Progressive, Inc.
Firstdate	1909
Country	United States
Based	Madison, Wisconsin
Language	English

The Progressive (U.S.) is an American monthly magazine founded in 1909 that has chronicled and advocated for progressive politics, social reform, and civil liberties. It has featured reporting, commentary, and essays on domestic policy, foreign affairs, labor rights, and civil rights, drawing contributors from across the political and cultural spectrum. Over its history the magazine has intersected with major institutions, movements, and figures in American public life.

History

The magazine was established in 1909 during the era of Progressivism, contemporaneous with figures such as Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and organizations like the National Consumers League and the American Federation of Labor. Early decades saw interaction with reformers including Jane Addams, Florence Kelley, and John Dewey and debates over issues involving the New Deal, the Great Depression, and the Sacco and Vanzetti case. During the mid-20th century The Progressive engaged with the New Deal Coalition, the Civil Rights Movement, and critics including Huey Long and Joseph McCarthy. In the 1960s and 1970s the magazine intersected with figures and institutions such as Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, Students for a Democratic Society, and debates over the Vietnam War. In later decades The Progressive responded to policy changes under administrations of Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden, while engaging with movements tied to United Farm Workers, Industrial Workers of the World, Black Lives Matter, and Occupy Wall Street.

Editorial stance and mission

The magazine articulates a progressive platform linking traditions from Progressivism to contemporary movements such as Democratic Socialists of America and advocates for civil liberties defended by organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union. Its editorial stance has commented on legislation including the Social Security Act, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Affordable Care Act, and debates over treaties and institutions such as NAFTA, the World Trade Organization, and the United Nations. The Progressive often aligns with labor institutions including the AFL–CIO, consumer advocacy groups like Public Citizen, and environmental organizations such as Sierra Club and Greenpeace.

Notable contributors and staff

Over time The Progressive has published work by intellectuals and activists including John Dewey, Howard Zinn, Noam Chomsky, Naomi Klein, Cornel West, Ralph Nader, I.F. Stone, A.J. Muste, Bayard Rustin, Joan Baez, Studs Terkel, Barbara Ehrenreich, Ronald Dworkin, Michael Moore, Amy Goodman, Arundhati Roy, Toni Morrison, W.E.B. Du Bois, James Baldwin, Eugene V. Debs, Paul Krugman, Henry Wallace, Emma Goldman, Earl Browder, Alice Paul, Walter Reuther, Victor Navasky, William Appleman Williams, and Howard Fast. Editors and staff have included regional figures tied to University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, Wisconsin civic life, and national networks involving Columbia University, Harvard University, Princeton University, Yale University, University of Chicago, and Stanford University.

Content and sections

Typical issues combine investigative reporting, essays, reviews, and interviews covering topics such as labor organizing linked to United Auto Workers, immigration debates involving Sanctuary city policies, civil liberties cases argued before the Supreme Court of the United States, foreign policy concerning Iraq War, Afghanistan, Iran nuclear program, and international institutions like NATO and European Union. Regular sections include book reviews engaging publishers like Random House and Penguin Books, cultural criticism addressing artists such as Pablo Picasso, Bob Dylan, Marianne Moore, and analyses of economic policy involving scholars from Brookings Institution and Economic Policy Institute. The magazine also publishes poetry and fiction alongside reportage on social movements including Feminist movement, LGBT rights movement, and Environmental movement.

Controversies and legal cases

The Progressive has been involved in high-profile legal and ethical controversies, most notably the 1979 attempt by the United States Department of Energy to suppress an article about nuclear weapons, which led to the landmark case involving prior restraint and the First Amendment to the United States Constitution; litigants and amici included figures from American Civil Liberties Union and legal scholars from American Bar Association. The magazine has drawn criticism from political figures across the spectrum including Richard Nixon, Pat Buchanan, William F. Buckley Jr., and more recently commentators tied to Fox News and MSNBC. Debates have centered on national security, whistleblowers such as Daniel Ellsberg, corporate influence involving conglomerates like General Electric and ExxonMobil, and questions raised by investigative pieces about surveillance programs linked to National Security Agency and international intelligence sharing such as Five Eyes.

Circulation and influence

Distribution has historically combined regional subscribers in the Midwest with national and international readership reached through partnerships with independent bookstores, university libraries such as Library of Congress and digital platforms. Influence is evident in citation by policymakers, academics, and activists referenced in hearings of the United States Congress, policy papers from think tanks like Center for American Progress and Heritage Foundation, and curricula at institutions including Columbia University School of Journalism. The magazine's reporting has shaped discussions in media outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, The Atlantic, New Republic, and public broadcasting such as NPR and PBS.

Awards and recognition

Contributors to The Progressive have received honors from institutions such as the Pulitzer Prize committees, fellowships from the MacArthur Foundation, awards from the National Magazine Awards, and recognition from civil liberties groups including the ACLU and environmental prizes from organizations like the Rachel Carson Center and Sierra Club. The magazine itself has been cited in academic studies published by presses including Oxford University Press and University of Chicago Press and acknowledged in retrospectives by archives such as the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Category:Political magazines published in the United States