The American Conservative - History

History

In 2002 The American Conservative was founded by Scott McConnell, Patrick Buchanan, and Taki Theodoracopulos in opposition to the Iraqi War. "The idea of "The American Conservative" was that there were enough who disagreed with mainstream conservatism—libertarians, paleoconservatives, and civil libertarian conservatives, among other dissenters—to warrant such a publication. While other conservative magazines like the National Review and The Weekly Standard marched more or less in lockstep with the Bush Administration, "The American Conservative" argued for a different course—sometimes with greater ferocity than the major political magazines on the left."

Scott McConnell served as the magazine's first editor, followed by managing editor Kara Hopkins.

Before the 2006 midterm elections, The American Conservative urged its readers to vote for Democrats, saying, "It should surprise few readers that we think a vote that is seen—in America and the world at large—as a decisive “No” vote on the Bush presidency is the best outcome."

As of 2007, Buchanan and Taki ceased to be involved with the editorial operations of The American Conservative, although Buchanan remains on the board of its parent, the American Ideas Institute, and both continue to contribute columns. Ron Unz was named publisher in 2007. Some paleoconservatives regard him as a proponent of mass immigration. Unz has since published two major investigations for the magazine, one on the low incidence of Hispanic crime and one on China's growth. In 2011, Wick Allison became the magazine's publisher.

In its April 20, 2009 issue TAC announced that "he economic crisis is exacting a toll on the publishing world, and The American Conservative has not been spared" and that without "a major new infusion of capital," it would print its final edition on May 7, 2009. It subsequently returned to publication, but as a monthly.

In 2010, Daniel McCarthy succeeded Kara Hopkins as editor. In June, 2011, Wick Allison, a former publisher of National Review and owner of D Magazine in Dallas, was named president and CEO of the American Ideas Institute, the magazine's publisher. In September, 2011, the magazine introduced an editorial redesign of its print publication, and in May, 2012, a redesign of its website.

In 2012, David Brooks characterized the magazine as a paleoconservative publication, writing "The American Conservative has become one of the more dynamic spots on the political Web. Writers like Rod Dreher and Daniel Larison tend to be suspicious of bigness: big corporations, big government, a big military, concentrated power and concentrated wealth. Writers at that Web site, and at the temperamentally aligned Front Porch Republic, treasure tight communities and local bonds. They’re alert to the ways capitalism can erode community. Dispositionally, they are more Walker Percy than Pat Robertson."