Atlanta Journal-Constitution Publisher Andrew Morse to Step Down After Missing Digital Subscriber Target

Andrew Morse is stepping down as publisher and president of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution next month after nearly three and a half years leading a high-profile effort to transform the storied Georgia newspaper into a digital-first operation. In January 2023, Morse took over with a $150 million plan from owner Cox Enterprises to reinvent the paper and set an ambitious goal of reaching 500,000 paying digital subscribers by the end of 2026.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution had 53,000 digital subscribers when he arrived.

It now has 101,000. Morse now says the 500,000 subscriber goal is attainable but will take more time. "We set a very ambitious goal," Morse says. "It's still very achievable based on the size of this market and the pace of our growth.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution abandoned print at the end of 2025 to go all-in on digital innovation and dispensed with its print edition on January 1, 2026. Atlanta is now the largest metro region in the country without a major printed newspaper.

Ceased publication of print editions in February 2025 along with sister papers in Jersey City and Trenton. " "We have been on a great journey with the AJC ... trying to transform a really proud, storied daily newspaper into a modern media company," Morse said.

Family concerns drove his choice because he has been living in Atlanta for three years while his family lives in New York, requiring commuting. He will be replaced by Paul Curran, a senior advertising executive with Cox Media. Paul Curran's appointment as publisher and president takes full effect June 29.

Cox Enterprises is a joint venture in which the newspaper's parent company retains a large minority stake. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has been losing money for years. The Cox family has owned the Journal since 1939 and the Constitution since 1950.

The Journal and Constitution were fully merged in 2001. Cox sold off all their other papers then bought back the Dayton Daily News and two other Ohio papers. Alex Taylor is CEO and chairman of Cox Enterprises and is the great-grandson of Ohio Gov.

James Cox, who founded the company in 1898. The Cox family invested $150 million to reinvent the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. More than half of the AJC's 320 staffers are part of its newsroom. Under Morse's leadership the paper received its first Peabody award for social media video coverage of ICE efforts in Georgia.

It renewed its interest in matters beyond the metro region, scrapped geographic-based beats for subject coverage, and invested in newsletters, podcasts and social media posts. Shereta Williams is executive vice president of growth operations at Cox Enterprises. " She said it will take the paper another few years to attain financial sustainability but it is within sight.

Morse had helped usher ABC, Bloomberg and CNN into the digital age before arriving in Atlanta.

“There's a long way to go," Morse says. "The verdict isn't in. But we'll get there." NPR reported that Morse's effort has been closely watched as legacy newspapers face financial stress and consolidation. Cox Enterprises says it remains 100 percent committed to the paper's mission of providing high-quality journalism for Atlanta and the South. The family has the reserves to subsidize its hometown paper from earnings in cable television, broadband, car sales and other ventures.”