The National Geographic Society is a research and exploration nonprofit best known for publishing National Geographic magazine. Founded in 1888, the Society rose to prominence due to the quality of its research, travel stories, and photography, amassing millions of subscribers for its magazine and eventually branching into other commercial interests.

In 2015, the Society spun off its commercial products, including the magazine, into National Geographic Partners, a joint-venture with 21st Century Fox, which was later acquired by Disney. At the end of 2022, National Geographic had 1.7 million subscribers, ¹ but is scheduled to cease physical sales in 2024 due to declining sales and a larger digital presence.

In 2014, Susan Goldberg became editor-in-chief of National Geographic Society. In 2015, she transferred to National Geographic Partners as editorial director, and remained in the role until February 2022. ² Under Goldberg, National Geographic magazine became increasingly left leaning, with special issues on gender (featuring a young transgender woman on the cover) and race, which included an apology for the magazine’s allegedly racist commentary in the past. During her tenure, Goldberg claimed the magazine was “proudly” non-partisan. ³

History

The National Geographic Society was founded in 1888 by a group of scholars, explorers, and scientists in Washington, D.C. for “the increase and diffusion of geographic knowledge.” Initially, the Society financed scientific and exploratory research. Founding members included Alexander Graham Bell and his father-in-law, Bell Telephone president Gardiner Green Hubbard. Nine months after its founding, NGS began printing National Geographic, which was distributed to 165 charter members. ^{4 5}

In 1897, Bell succeeded Hubbard as president after the latter’s death. Bell hired Gilbert Grosner to serve as editor of National Geographic. From 1899 to 1910, Society membership rose from 1,400 to 74,000, and then reached 713,000 by 1920. The rapid rise in membership was attributed to Grosner, who shifted away from academic stories to colorful travelogues and photography. National Geographic was the first magazine to use a color-photo lab, the first to print an all-color issue, and the first to print a hologram. More controversially, National Geographic magazine was one of the first magazines to depict female nudity. ⁶

Grosner eventually married Bell’s daughter and became editor-in-chief. Grosner served in this role until 1954 and became president in 1920 after Bell’s death. Grosner’s son and grandson would later both serve as editor-in-chief and president. ⁷

The Society expanded its publications over the decades, with magazines that include National Geographic Kids, National Geographic Traveler, and the now-defunct National Geographic Adventure and National Geographic Research. The Society also published through National Geographic Books and National Geographic Maps, and later expanded into television programming. ⁸

In 1999, the Society launched National Geographic Expeditions, a travel service featuring cruises and planned trips. ⁹

Restructuring

Throughout most of its history, the National Geographic Society oversaw the organization’s grantmaking and commercial activities, including the publication of National Geographic magazine. In 1997, NGS made a deal with 21st Century Fox to rent out its National Geographic-branded television channels to be run by Fox. ¹⁰

In 2015, the Society spun off its channels and an assortment of other commercial ventures into a new for-profit corporation called National Geographic Partners (NGP). 73 percent of NGP was owned by Fox and the rest was owned by the Society. ¹¹ NGP was valued at $725 million at its inception. ¹² National Geographic Society laid off 9% of its staff ahead of the sale. ¹³ The acquisition was controversial as some critics believed the Society was going against its nonprofit ethos. ¹⁴

In 2019, Disney purchased 21^st Century Fox for $71 billion, and Fox’s shares of NGP transferred to Disney. ¹⁵

In 2023, National Geographic Partners sustained two rounds of layoffs, the second of which released all remaining staff writers. National Geographic would operate henceforth based on already-produced pieces and freelancers. NGP also announced that it would end physical newsstand sales of National Geographic magazine in 2024. ^{16 17}

Activities

The National Geographic Society has overseen numerous research and grant programs since its founding. Notable grants include funding for expeditions to the North Pole, exploration of the Incan ruins in Peru, deep sea exploration, and Jane Goodall’s work on chimpanzees. ¹⁸

Since the National Geographic Partners was split off from National Geographic Society, the disbursement of grants has been the Society’s primary activity. In 2022, the Society had three research programs. The Science Innovation Team spent $62 million, making $22 million in grants. The Storytelling Team supports journalists, photographers, and filmmakers; it spent $59 million, with $6 million in grants. The Education Program funds school programs and online resources; it spent $21 million, with $2 million in grants. ¹⁹

Racism Accusations

The founders of the National Geographic Society have been described as proponents of “scientific racism and imperialism.” For instance, the Society’s first president, Gardiner Green Hubbard, wrote in an early issue of National Geographic: “The Negro has never developed any high degree of [European] civilization; and even if he has made considerable progress … when that contact ceased he has deteriorated in barbarism.” A 1916 article in an issue on Australia stated: “South Australian Blackfellows: These savages rank lowest in intelligence of all human beings.” ²⁰

In March 2018, National Geographic magazine published a special issue on racism. The lead essay, written by then-editor-in-chief Susan Goldberg, stated that the magazine had hired a historian to investigate its archives for evidence of racism. Goldberg acknowledged the magazine’s racist past: “Until the 1970s National Geographic all but ignored people of color who lived in the United States, rarely acknowledging them beyond laborers or domestic workers… Meanwhile it pictured ‘natives’ elsewhere as exotics, famously and frequently unclothed, happy hunters, noble savages—every type of cliché.” Goldberg vowed that the magazine would take a more racially conscious approach in the future. ^{21 22}

The special issue’s articles included, “As America Changes, Some Anxious Whites Feel Left Behind” and “There’s No Scientific Basis for Race – It’s a Made-Up Label.” Such articles received criticisms from National Public Radio and other left-of-center sources for allegedly “promoting race-blind and Whiteness-centered rhetoric.” ²³ However, other observers, such as The New Yorker, praised National Geographic magazine for its candor and effort. ²⁴

In June 2020, National Geographic Partners installed a billboard stating “Black Lives Matter” on the side of its Washington, D.C. headquarters after the death of George Floyd. NGP and the Society also announced a slate of new diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, including efforts to hire more racial minorities, a year-long residency program for racial minority journalists, a program to finance more research and journalism by racial minorities, unconscious bias training for employees, and the establishment of a new internal Diversity and Inclusion Council. ²⁵

In 2021, the left-of-center Vox published an article criticizing National Geographic magazine for a lack of commitment to its left-wing racial goals. Vox interviewed 20 current and former employees and found claims that employees who spoke out against “racial insensitivities in coverage” were ignored, racial minority employees felt “devalued and demeaned,” and white photographers were permitted to behave rudely. ²⁶

For instance, the November 2018 magazine issue concerned the American West, and featured a cover image of a white cowboy on horseback. According to some employees at the magazine, “the image of a lone white cowboy, sunlit against the backdrop of a Western landscape, reinforced some of the racist stereotypes — of white people as saviors and rightful stewards of the land.” Goldberg overruled the concerns and kept the photo. ²⁷

In another instance, longtime contributor Robert Draper wrote a story about suicide bombings in Sri Lanka. Many staff members expressed concerns that Draper was white and not Sri Lankan yet made suggestions about what the Sri Lankan government and people “need” to do. Goldberg defended Draper: “we never want to return to… the days when only women can write ‘women’s’ stories, only men can cover sports, only African Americans can cover the black community, and so forth.” ²⁸

Vox also found that the magazine had not fully abided by its commitment to hiring more racial minorities: more than 75% of National Geographic magazine cover stories had been assigned to white photographers since the 2018 special issue on race. ²⁹

Also in June 2021, it was revealed that Goldberg had set her email signature as: “white, privileged, with much to learn.” ³⁰

Gender

In January 2017, National Geographic magazine released a special issue on gender that featured a transperson on the magazine’s cover for the first time. Then-editor-in-chief Susan Goldberg wrote the introductory piece, entitled “We Are in the Midst of a Gender Revolution,” which states, “we know XX and XY, and blue and pink, don’t tell the full story.” ³¹ The issue prompted an estimated 7,000 readers to cancel their subscriptions. ³²

The following month, National Geographic Partners released the documentary Gender Revolution: A Journey with Katie Couric which explored the modern conceptions of gender identity. ³³

Climate Change

National Geographic magazine has published many articles about the threat of climate change. Environmentalist critics have claimed that the magazine has been too conservative in its warnings about climate change, ³⁴ though in a 2023 issue, the magazine called climate change “the greatest threat to human health.” ³⁵

In 2017, National Geographic published a video online of a sick, emaciated polar bear; the photographer said it was meant to “illustrate the urgency of climate change.” However, after the video went viral, the magazine received backlash because there was no evidence that climate change caused the polar bear’s apparent weakness. ³⁶

Other Controversies

Since 1982, National Geographic magazine has been embroiled in numerous photo manipulation controversies, starting with an altered photo of the Pyramids of Giza, which readers noticed placed the pyramids too close together. In July 2016, the magazine reasserted that it was committed to keeping doctored photos out of its publication. In May 2019, photographer Beth Moon was discovered to have doctored photos of a night sky prominently featured in the magazine. Moon claimed it was an accident but took responsibility. ^{37 38}

In 2019, National Geographic aired “Aretha,” a television miniseries about the life of singer Aretha Franklin. National Geographic was publicly criticized by Franklin’s family for allegedly cutting them out of the show’s production. National Geographic responded that it had coordinated production with Franklin’s estate, which was a different entity from Franklin’s family. ³⁹

NGP has been criticized for engaging in environmentalist advocacy while operating a “specially outfitted” Boeing 757 jet with “comfortable VIP-style leather seating,” “plush, sleek interior design,” a private chef, and a “dedicated luggage handler.” The jet is used by National Geographic Expeditions for high-end travel packages costing around $100,000. ⁴⁰

In 2012, National Geographic magazine temporarily stopped posting new pictures to its Instagram account after an update to the terms of service indicated that Instagram may have been able to sell users’ photos. ⁴¹

Lobbying

From 1999 to 2015, the National Geographic Society (NGS) engaged in lobbying most years. Expenditures were typically $120,000 annually, and reached a peak of $160,000. ⁴²

Leadership

Jean Case, a former executive at AOL, has been the chairperson of the National Geographic Society (NGS) since 2016. In 2020, Case founded the Case Impact Network, an investment fund for “inclusive” businesses. In 1997, Jean and her husband Stephen Case founded the Stephen Case Foundation, a charitable nonprofit that gives to left-of-center causes. Jean Case is also on the board of the White House Historical Association, and on the advisory boards of the Brain Trust Accelerator Fund, the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative, and Georgetown University’s Beeck Center for Social Impact and Innovation. ^{43 44 45} In 2010, Jean and Stephen Case signed the Giving Pledge, promising to give away at least half of their wealth before their deaths. ⁴⁶

Katherine Bradley is the vice-chair of NGS. Bradley is also the founder and chair of CityBridge, a nonprofit education investment fund, and the chair of the KIPP Foundation, a charter school network. ⁴⁷

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