PERSON: James Bennet

Senior Editor

James Douglas Bennet (born March 28, 1966) is an American journalist. He is a senior editor for The Economist, and writes the Lexington column for the magazine. He was editor-in-chief of The Atlantic from 2006–2016 and was the editorial page editor at The New York Times from May 2016 until his forced resignation in June 2020. He is the younger brother of U.S. Senator Michael Bennet.

Bennet began his career in journalism as an intern for The News & Observer and The New Republic. From 1989 to 1991, he held an editing post at The Washington Monthly. He joined The New York Times in 1991. He rose to serve as a White House correspondent and Jerusalem Bureau Chief. Upon his return from Jerusalem, he wrote a memorandum on the proper usage of the terms “terrorist” and “terrorism,” which is often cited by editors of The Times.

Bennet was due to become the Times’s Beijing correspondent in late 2006. He resigned from the paper in March of that year to accept an offer to become the 14th editor-in-chief of The Atlantic. Bennet was selected by the magazine’s publisher, David G. Bradley, following an exhaustive selection process. Bradley conferred with 80 journalists around the United States.

Bennet as editor attracted attention in April 2008 when the magazine featured a cover story on Britney Spears, a change from The Atlantic’s tradition in higher culture. The issue did poorly in newsstand sales.

During his tenure, The Atlantic dramatically increased web traffic, and in 2010, the magazine had its first profitable year in a decade.

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