The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (sometimes known as The AJC) is an American online newspaper based in Atlanta, Georgia. It is the main publication of Cox Enterprises. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution began when two older newspapers, The Atlanta Journal and The Atlanta Constitution, joined together. Their teams worked as one group in 1982, and by 2001, they stopped publishing two separate papers—a morning one called the Constitution and an afternoon one called the Journal. Instead, they made one morning paper called the Journal-Constitution.

The newspaper’s main office is in Midtown Atlanta. For many years, it shared its home with a television station called WSB-TV and several radio stations, also based in Midtown Atlanta. The newspaper stayed with Cox Enterprises, while WSB became part of a separate group called the Cox Media Group.

In 2025, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution stopped printing papers on paper. Since December 31, 2025, it has been available only online, where people can read it on computers and other devices.

The Atlanta Constitution

In 1868, Carey Wentworth Styles, along with James Anderson and William Hemphill, bought a small newspaper called the Atlanta Daily Opinion and renamed it The Constitution. It was first published on June 16, 1868, and later changed its name to The Atlanta Constitution in October 1869. Hemphill managed the business side until 1901.

Over the years, many talented writers and editors worked for the newspaper. One famous writer was Joel Chandler Harris, who created the character Uncle Remus to share stories from African-American culture. The newspaper also supported important ideas, like industrial development and the creation of Georgia Tech.

The Atlanta Constitution received many Pulitzer Prizes for its work. It was known for its strong voice and important contributions to journalism.

The Atlanta Journal

The Atlanta Journal started in 1883. In 1887, a lawyer named Hoke Smith bought the paper. The paper later supported a presidential candidate named Grover Cleveland, and Smith became Secretary of the Interior. Famous writer Margaret Mitchell, who wrote the book Gone with the Wind, worked for the Journal from 1922 to 1926. Her stories about important generals helped her write her famous book. In 1922, the Journal also started one of the first radio stations in the South, called WSB. In 1939, the radio station and the newspaper were sold to James Middleton Cox, who started Cox Enterprises. The Journal had a motto: "Covers Dixie like the Dew".

Merger

Cox Enterprises bought The Atlanta Constitution in June 1950. Both newspapers were owned by the same company but kept separate newsrooms until 1982. The Atlanta Journal was an afternoon paper and the Atlanta Constitution was a morning paper. Fewer people wanted afternoon papers in the 1970s. In November 2001, the two papers became one daily morning paper called The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Before merging, both papers planned to start TV stations: WSB-TV for the Journal and WCON-TV for the Constitution. Only WSB-TV started in 1948, the first TV station in the Deep South.

Later, the paper received awards for important stories. In 1989, Bill Dedman won for investigating unfair banking practices. In 1993, Mike Toner won for explaining how some tiny living things can resist medicines. In 2002, Julia Wallace became the first woman editor of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Mike Luckovich won an award twice for his editorial cartoons.

Circulation

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution was read in all 159 counties in Georgia and nearby areas like western North Carolina and Tallahassee, Florida. Fewer people were buying newspapers, so the paper stopped delivering outside the main Atlanta area in the late 2000s. By 2010, the number of daily readers had dropped by more than half.

In August 2025, the paper announced it would stop printing copies and only be online by the end of the year. At that time, about 40,000 people still got the paper in print, down from 94,000 in 2020 and much lower than the 630,000 who read it in 2004.

Sustainability

The president of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Andrew Morse, wants to get 500,000 people to pay for digital news by the end of 2026. As of August 2025, the paper had 75,000 digital subscriptions, up from 55,000 in 2023. But it may not reach the goal at this rate.

Morse says that traffic from Google has gone down by 40 percent recently. The paper faces challenges from new technologies and changes in how people read news. On February 3, 2026, just 34 days after stopping its print edition, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution announced it would reduce its staff by letting go of 50 employees, about half from its newsroom.

Headquarters

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is based in Midtown Atlanta. Before that, it was in Perimeter Center, an office area in Dunwoody, Georgia, and even earlier in Downtown Atlanta near the Five Points district.

In 2010, the newspaper moved its offices to Dunwoody but planned to return to Midtown Atlanta in 2024 to be closer to the city center. It will move into new space in the Promenade Central building on Peachtree Street.

Controversy

In 1988, an editor at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution left the newspaper after some stories upset people in Atlanta and company leaders.

In 1996, The AJC was the first newspaper to report that a person linked to the Centennial Olympic Park bombing might have been involved. This information came from a government source. Even after the person was cleared, the newspaper did not apologize or change its story.

In 2023, the newspaper had to correct a story about a sports team and fired the reporter who wrote it. The reporter had worked there for 25 years.

Organization of the newspaper

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has four main parts each day. Even though it stopped printing papers on December 31, 2025, it still shares news online like a regular newspaper.

Pulitzer Prizes

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and its earlier newspapers, The Atlanta Journal and The Atlanta Constitution, have won many Pulitzer Prizes. These awards recognize excellent work by journalists.

In 1931, The Atlanta Constitution won for showing problems in city government. In 1948, The Atlanta Journal won for uncovering cheating in elections. In 1959, writer Ralph McGill won for his powerful articles. In 1960, Jack Nelson won for revealing bad conditions at a hospital. In 1967, Eugene Patterson won for his writings about important events.

Later, in 1988, Doug Marlette won for his cartoons. In 1989, Bill Dedman won for showing unfair treatment in lending money. In 1993, Mike Toner won for explaining how small living things can become resistant to medicines. In 1995 and 2006, Mike Luckovich won for his cartoons about many topics. In 2007, Cynthia Tucker won for her comments in articles, and Hank Klibanoff won for a book about the civil rights movement.

Notable people

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has had many well-known writers and editors. Some famous people who worked there are James M. Cox, Bill Dedman, George Goodwin, Henry W. Grady, Lewis Grizzard, Joel Chandler Harris, Hank Klibanoff, Bill Kovach, Mike Luckovich, Doug Marlette, Ralph McGill, Margaret Mitchell, Jack Nelson, Maude Andrews Ohl, Eugene Patterson, Wallace Putnam Reed, Celestine Sibley, Hoke Smith, Mike Toner, and Cynthia Tucker.