Time (magazine)
A weekly news magazine that pioneered telling news through people.
Time is an American news magazine headquartered in New York City. For nearly a century, it came out weekly, but since March 2020, it has been published every other week. Its first issue appeared on March 3, 1923, in New York, and for much of its early history, co-founder Henry Luce was in charge. The magazine was the first weekly news magazine in the United States, started by Luce and Briton Hadden. Its approach was to present news through the lens of individuals; until the late 1960s, every cover featured a single person. In later years, Time introduced “People of the Year” issues, which have become increasingly popular.
A European edition, Time Europe, is printed in London and also covers the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. Time Asia is based in Hong Kong, while the South Pacific edition—covering Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands—operates out of Sydney. Time France launched in 2025. Since 2018, the magazine has been owned by Salesforce founder Marc Benioff, who bought it from Meredith Corporation and now publishes it through Time USA, LLC.
Hadden and Luce had previously worked together at the Yale Daily News, with Hadden as chairman and Luce as managing editor. They originally planned to call the magazine *Facts*, aiming for brevity so a busy person could finish it in an hour, but settled on *Time* with the slogan “Take Time – It’s Brief.” Hadden, known for a carefree attitude, liked to tease Luce and saw *Time* as both important and fun, which led to heavy coverage of celebrities, politicians, entertainment, and pop culture—a focus some critics considered too light for serious news.
The first cover featured Joseph G. Cannon, the retired Speaker of the House. The cover price was 15¢ (about $2.83 in 2025). To mark its 15th anniversary, the February 28, 1938, issue included a facsimile reprint of the very first issue, complete with all original articles and ads.
After Hadden died in 1929, Luce became the dominant figure at *Time* and a major force in 20th-century media. Roy Edward Larsen, originally circulation manager and later general manager, was described as second only to Luce in importance. Larsen, a Harvard graduate, was hired in 1922. To raise $100,000, Luce and Hadden turned to wealthy Yale alumni, including Henry P. Davison of J.P. Morgan & Co., publicity man Martin Egan, and banker Dwight Morrow. After Hadden’s death, Larsen bought 550 shares of Time Inc. with money from selling RKO stock he had inherited from his father, who ran the Benjamin Franklin Keith theater chain in New England.
Luce then became the largest Time Inc. stockholder and ran the company autocratically, with Larsen as the second-largest stockholder and a director and vice president by 1929. J.P. Morgan retained influence through two directorships and stock holdings in both *Time* and *Fortune*, alongside other shareholders like Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. and the New York Trust Company (Standard Oil).
Larsen boosted circulation by using radio and movie theaters. In 1924, he launched a 15-minute radio quiz show called *Pop Question*, which ran until 1925. In 1928, he began a weekly 10-minute radio program of news summaries from *Time*, broadcast over 33 U.S. stations. In March 1931, he introduced a 30-minute CBS radio dramatization, *The March of Time*, which aired on CBS until 1937, then on NBC until 1945 (with a break from 1939 to 1941). This program brought *Time* to millions of new readers, boosting circulation during the 1930s. *People* magazine later grew out of *Time*’s “People” page.
At Luce’s death, his Time Inc. stock was worth about $109 million ($1.05 billion in 2025), yielding an annual dividend of over $2.4 million ($23.2 million in 2025). The Larsen family’s stock was worth around $80 million in the 1960s. Roy Larsen served as a director, chairman of the executive committee, and vice chairman of the board until mid-1979. On September 10, 1979, *The New York Times* noted that Larsen was the only employee in company history granted an exemption from its mandatory retirement policy.
- founders
- Briton Hadden and Henry Luce
- headquarters
- New York City
- type
- News magazine
- frequency
- Every other week (since March 2020); previously weekly
Verified Timeline
Lore & Background
They first called the proposed magazine Facts to emphasize brevity so a busy man could read it in an hour. They changed the name to Time and used the slogan "Take Time – It's Brief". Hadden was considered carefree and liked to tease Luce. He saw Time as important but also fun, which accounted for its heavy coverage of celebrities and politicians, the entertainment industry, and pop culture, criticizing it as too light for serious news. The first issue of Time featured Joseph G. Cannon, the retired Speaker of the House of Representatives, on its cover. A facsimile reprint of Issue No. 1, including all of the articles and advertisements contained in the original, was included with copies of the magazine's issue from February 28, 1938, in commemoration of its 15th anniversary. The cover price was 15¢, equivalent to $2.83 in 2025. Following Hadden's death in 1929, Luce became the dominant man at Time and a significant figure in the history of 20th-century media. Roy Edward Larsen was originally circulation manager and then general manager of Time, later publisher of Life, for many years president of Time Inc., and in the long history of the corporation the most influential and important figure after Luce. In 1929, Roy Larsen was named a Time Inc. director and vice president. After Time began publishing weekly in March 1923, Roy Larsen increased its circulation by using U.S. radio and movie theaters worldwide. In 1924 Larsen brought Time into the infant radio business by broadcasting a 15-minute quiz show called Pop Question, which survived until 1925. In 1928, Larsen undertook the weekly broadcast of a 10-minute programme series of brief news summaries, drawn from current issues of Time magazine, originally broadcast over 33 stations throughout the United States. In March 1931, Larsen introduced a 30-minute radio program, The March of Time, to be broadcast over CBS. Each week, the program presented a dramatization of the week's news for its listeners. Between 1931 and 1937, Larsen's The March of Time radio program was broadcast over CBS radio. Between 1937 and 1945, it was broadcast over NBC radio – except between 1939 and 1941, when it was not aired. People magazine was based on Time's "People" page.
Reader's Guide
Time magazine has been a significant force in American journalism for over a century, shaping how news is presented through a focus on individuals and personalities. Its 'Person of the Year' issues became a cultural touchstone. The magazine expanded into international editions: a European edition, Time Europe, is published in London and also covers the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America; an Asian edition, Time Asia, is based in Hong Kong; the South Pacific edition, which covers Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands, is based in Sydney; Time France began publication in 2025. Since 2018, Time has been owned by Salesforce founder Marc Benioff, who acquired it from Meredith Corporation. Benioff currently publishes the magazine through the company Time USA, LLC. In 2007, Time moved from a Monday subscription/newsstand delivery to a schedule where the magazine goes on sale Fridays and is delivered to subscribers on Saturday. The magazine was published on Fridays when it began in 1923. In early 2007, the year's first issue was delayed roughly a week due to "editorial changes", including the layoff of 49 employees. In 2009, Time announced it was introducing Mine, a personalized print magazine mixing content from various Time Warner publications based on the reader's preferences. The new magazine was met with a poor reception. The magazine has an online archive with the unformatted text for every article published. The articles were indexed and converted from scanned images using optical character recognition technology. In January 2013, Time Inc. announced that it would cut nearly 500 jobs – roughly 6% of its 8,000 staff worldwide. Although Time magazine has maintained high sales, its ad pages have declined significantly. In September 2013, Nancy Gibbs was named as the first female managing editor of Time magazine. In November 2017, Meredith Corporation announced its acquisition of Time, Inc., backed by Koch Equity Development. In March 2018, only six weeks after the closure of the sale, Meredith announced that it would explore the sale of Time and sister magazines Fortune, Money and Sports Illustrated, since they did not align with the company's lifestyle brands. In October 2018, Meredith Corporation sold Time to Marc Benioff and his wife Lynne for $190 million. Benioff is the chairman and co-CEO of Salesforce.com. Time is to remain separate from that company, with Benioff not involved in the magazine's daily operations. Forbes COO Jessica Sibley was appointed CEO of Time in November 2022. Stating that she intended for the company to be "cash flow positive" by 2025, Sibley oversaw a number of immediate changes. According to Sibley, her first focus was pivoting the company away from business-to-consumer revenues to business-to-business revenues, resulting in Time dropping its online paywall in June 2023. She also hired new executives, including new chief revenue officers, a new editor-in-chief, and a new chief strategy officer. She oversaw layoffs at Time in 2024, calling them necessary to improve the company's financial position. The layoffs were criticized by The NewsGuild of New York and the Time Union. The layoffs were part of a broader strategy to focus on covering leadership (Time's most commercially successful area) and to "provide journalism that serves these present and future leaders", including leaders in climate, AI, and health coverage. As of 2025, Time's circulation has been steadily declining. During the second half of 2009, the magazine had a 34.9% decline in newsstand sales. During the first half of 2010, there was another decline of 30%. In 2012, Time had a circulation of 3.3 million, making it the 11th-most circulated magazine in the United States, and the second-most circulated weekly behind People. In July 2017, its circulation was 3,028.
Did You Know?
- The first issue of Time featured Joseph G. Cannon, the retired Speaker of the House of Representatives, on its cover, and the cover price was 15¢, equivalent to $2.83 in 2025.
- Roy Larsen increased Time's circulation by using U.S. radio and movie theaters worldwide, and in 1924 he brought Time into radio with a 15-minute quiz show called Pop Question.
- In March 1931, Larsen introduced a 30-minute radio program, The March of Time, broadcast over CBS, which dramatized the week's news.
- People magazine was based on Time's 'People' page.
- In 2012, Time had a circulation of 3.3 million, making it the 11th-most circulated magazine in the United States and the second-most circulated weekly behind People.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Time's Person of the Year?
It is the magazine's long-running annual feature in which editors select the individual or group they believe most shaped the world that year. The selection has become one of the most widely discussed and anticipated moments in the magazine's calendar.
How often does Time put out a new issue?
Since March 2020, Time has moved to a biweekly cadence, meaning readers get a fresh issue every other week. Prior to that shift, the magazine had been released on a standard weekly schedule.
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