As much as I do otherwise, I do not like to predict the future. But sometimes prognostication doesn’t require any luck or even intelligence. You can consume the facts, formulate a thought, and know what’s going to happen.
The Messenger was always, absolutely, doomed.
An online news site launched last May by Jimmy Finkelstein, the former owner of The Hill, its goal was to generate $100 million in revenue in 2024. It generated $3 million last year and is about out of cash. There’s a strong possibility it might shut down altogether. None of this is surprising because The Messenger has no viable business model. It operates with a distinctly 2010s outlook: generate traffic booms and hope, somehow, that turns into cash. The Messenger is avowedly centrist, and this will invite a few tut-tuts from liberal media commentators who believe, to succeed, a publication must argue for or stand for something. Given the state of the digital landscape, and the number of left-leaning news organizations that are struggling mightily right now, politics isn’t likely playing much of a role in The Messenger’s failure.
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