The New Yorker: Celebrating the Centenary of a Witty and Cosmopolitan Magazine

The New Yorker magazine, considered a cornerstone of American literary and cultural life, known for its distinctive covers, in-depth journalism, humorous cartoons, and unique grammar, has celebrated its 100th year on newsstands. Founded on February 21, 1925, during the exuberance following the war and before the Great Depression, founders Harold Ross and Jane Grant aimed to publish 'a witty and cosmopolitan magazine, urban but not overly serious.' Now, after a century, the publication boasts over 1.3 million subscribers, most of whom receive both print and digital editions. Despite its tumultuous history, The New Yorker has often served as a mirror reflecting current events. Over the past hundred years and in more than five thousand issues, it has also published works by literary giants. Ernest Hemingway, Susan Sontag, and J.D. Salinger are among the writers who have graced its pages. Additionally, The New Yorker offers a mix of current news, analysis, stories, critiques, poetry, and, of course, its legendary cartoons. This weekly publication has released some of the world's most significant investigative reports, including a comprehensive report on the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, which dedicated the entire issue of August 31, 1946, to John Hersey's article on the subject. In 1961, Hannah Arendt covered the trial of Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann in The New Yorker, where the now-global term 'banality of evil' was first introduced. The magazine's covers, from its first issue a century ago to the atomic bombing of Japan in 1946, the September 11, 2001 attacks, and up to today, have consistently garnered admiration from artists and journalists. We review some of these covers. A hundred years ago, the first issue of The New Yorker was published at a price of 15 cents, featuring a cartoon image of a fictional gentleman watching a butterfly through a monocle. This character, created by artist Rea Irvin, was named 'Eustace Tilly' and gradually became a symbol of the magazine. Over the years, this character returned in various forms, including as a hipster, a person wearing a coronavirus mask, and even using a smartphone instead of a monocle. In 1946, The New Yorker dedicated an entire issue to John Hersey's report on the aftermath of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. The cover of this issue featured a pastoral scene drawn by Charles E. Martin. At that time, according to Françoise Mouly, the art director of The New Yorker, 'the images had to be such that they comforted us against global traumas and injuries.' The difference between this image and the content of the issue was so great that a warning banner was deemed necessary on the cover: 'This issue is entirely devoted to the story of how a city was destroyed by an atomic bomb.' The Twin Towers of the World Trade Center were depicted on the cover of another issue, but in such a dark and thick darkness that they were hardly recognizable. The art director of The New Yorker said, 'This image reflected what I experienced that day.' He was near the site with his wife, the famous cartoonist Art Spiegelman, and their daughter when the two towers collapsed. The couple co-signed this design. One of the controversial covers was published during the 2008 U.S. election campaign when extreme conservatives raised a case against Barack Obama questioning his American identity with the false claim that he was not born in the United States or was a Muslim. In response to this uproar, The New Yorker published a satirical image by Barry Blitt titled 'The Politics of Fear,' depicting Obama in a North African djellaba and his wife Michelle resembling an armed fighter in the Oval Office. In this design, a portrait of Osama bin Laden was also hanging on the wall, and the American flag was burning in the fireplace. This cartoon aimed to illustrate the absurdity of these rumors through exaggeration and show how some individuals used fear and misinformation to vilify him. However, this satire became highly controversial, as some audiences did not understand its true meaning and even considered it offensive.