[bearcobra]

100% not related is probably too strong, but reports say they've broken readership records and have added ~90,000 subscribers since March. It seems much more plausible that the collapse of the events and ad businesses due to current economic conditions are the driver.

[kristianc]

Both can be true. Ad revenues have been hit by COVID for sure, but the remaining ad dollars have gravitated toward higher-quality and more credible news sources. Clickbait and hype merchants like VICE, Buzzfeed, and latterly the Atlantic (the Buzzfeed of the Aspen Institute set) have suffered disproportionately.

[bazzert]

Exactly right, I used to be a subscriber and keen reader but lately it has been ridiculous headlines like this one ... https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/04/why-georg...