It seems every fifteen years or so Eureka Street has something to announce. There was 1991, when Eureka Street launched, 2006 with the switch from print to digital, and now, the next chapter in the Eureka Street journey.
But before we go into the details, some background: it’s no secret the last few years have been ones of pruning. You will have noticed Eureka Street went from five daily mail outs to two per week, plus the weekly. But thanks to your support, Eureka Street has continued to make valuable contributions to the public conversation.
Throughout this time, we continued to pay contributors and we want to continue doing this. Now, once again, we find it’s time to adapt to the challenges of the digital era.
The need for shared political, cultural and literary meeting grounds has never been greater and the need for publications like Eureka Street has never been more evident. Dip into an online forum and you’d be forgiven for thinking we’d witnessed the last days of civil society long ago. Over the last decade, we’ve seen an erosion of shared stories and a shared reality, abetted by socially corrosive social media.
Media seems less durable, less reflective, and no one seems to agree on much. With fracturing and fragmentation, more shared intellectual space is contested. More people live in self-contained media echo chambers with the volume of outrage permanently dialled up to eleven. And with that outrage, there’s less time to express sympathy for the views of opposing groups. According to social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, social media has been perfectly engineered to bring out our most moralistic and least reflective selves. At Eureka Street, we see the need to invert that trend by offering stories lighter on the moralising, heavier on reflection.
With pruning comes regrowth and renewal. Over the last two years, we have reviewed our business model, exploring sustainable ways of bringing you regular, thought-provoking stories and ideas. We’ve now developed what we feel to be the most sustainable way to operate into the future, while maintaining that openness and accessibility.
Which is why I am quietly overjoyed to be launching Eureka Street Plus, an expanded content offering for paid subscribers.
'The magazine’s offering has expanded, but our ongoing project remains: publishing reflective, high-quality writing. At this strange point in history, furthering productive conversation about issues that matter continues to be as essential as ever.'
Eureka Street Plus is a place where