Building The Athletic

(00:00:00) - Welcome to Making Media

(00:01:45) - First question - The playbook for subscription based businesses

(00:05:35) - User-centric development, as opposed to advertiser-centric in media

(00:07:32) - Adam’s reflections on the state of media and business development

(00:09:24) - Managing feedback in the subscription model between readers and journalists

(00:12:21) - The level of transparency in company meetings and how positivity affects the team 

(00:15:02) - Adam’s strategy when exploring alternative channels beyond Twitter to reach a broader audience

(00:17:16) - Long-form journalism pieces and how it affected subscription performance

(00:18:42) - The importance of bundling in The Athletic’s business

(00:22:09) - Insights revealed when transitioning from local coverage to national content

(00:23:17) - Adam’s key factors for fostering long-term alignment with employees 

(00:25:36) - How funding constraints in the early days influenced the business operations

(00:28:07) - The implementation of The Athletic’s pricing model and the factors that have contributed to its consistency over time

(00:30:37) - Balancing the app and website as an all-in destination versus leveraging other platforms

(00:32:43) - Subsequent changes since being acquired by The Times

(00:34:03) - Add-on businesses like events and merchandise and their relevance to the overall business strategy

(00:35:21) - The integration of multimedia components such as podcasts and videos

(00:37:15) - Navigating the transition into The Times, ensuring the preservation of existing culture and fostering alignment for the next phase

(00:39:51) - Potential opportunities and initiatives that Adam is excited about

(00:42:59) - Debrief