The Atlantic Names Historian Yoni Appelbaum as Its New Politics Editor

Following a year of record-setting audience growth for TheAtlantic.com, the site is welcoming Yoni Appelbaumas its new politics editor and has named Sophie Gilbert as its culture editor. J.J. Gould, editor of TheAtlantic.com, announced the moves today, along with the promotions of David A. Graham and Spencer Kornhaber to staff writer roles, in which they will cover political and global news, and pop culture and music, respectively.

“Yoni and Sophie are ideal people to have leading our coverage in these areas: They’re super smart; they have rich knowledge, creative instincts, and distinctive voices; and they’re just really good people,” said Gould. “David and Spencer—huge talents who’ve been invaluable to the site for years and are now moving into writing roles they were built for—were both heavily involved in their selection, which is further reason to feel great about them.”

Appelbaum is a social and cultural historian with a Ph.D. in American History from Brandeis University, and joins The Atlantic from Harvard where he’s been a lecturer on history and literature. He had an unconventional start with The Atlantic: as a frequent commenter on the site, specifically to posts by national correspondent Ta-Nehisi Coates. Appelbaum’s comments caught the attention of Coates and The Atlantic’s editors, who invited him to become a contributing writer.

“Yoni was essential to the last two or three pieces I wrote for the magazine—reading them and offering rigorous academic critique,” says Coates. “He’s proof that there is wisdom everywhere: that it’s possible to find someone like him in a comments section online. We’re getting someone who has been a part of The Atlantic for a long time. There’s no one like him in the world of journalism; he’s an original.” ...