New York (CNN Business) The Weekly Standard, the magazine that espouses traditional conservatism and which has remained deeply critical of President Donald Trump, will shutter after 23 years, its owner Clarity Media Group announced Friday morning. “Many media outlets have responded to the challenges of the moment by prioritizing affirmation over information, giving into the pull of polarization and the lure of clickbait.”

Further, the magazine’s editor-in-chief said it was “profound honor” to work The Weekly Standard‘s roster of reporters, adding, “I’m proud that we’ve remained both conservative and independent, providing substantive reporting and analysis based on facts, logic and reason.”

The magazine will post its final edition on December 17. Clarity Media CEO Ryan McKibben said in a statement that the financial performance of The Weekly Standard over the past five years “made it clear that a decision had to be made.” He said the publication “has been hampered by many of the same challenges that countless other magazines and newspapers across the country have been wrestling with.”

Fred Barnes, The Weekly Standard’s executive editor and also a founder, said the publication’s financial issues stemmed in part from its stance on President Trump. “The magazine has been home to some of the industry’s most dedicated and talented staff and I thank them for their hard work and contributions, not just to the publication, but the field of journalism.” Noting that the magazine has been buffeted by the same forces destroying other segments of U.S. media, McKibben added: “Despite investing significant resources into the publication, the financial performance of the publication over the last five years — with double-digit declines in its subscriber base all but one year since 2013 — made it clear that a decision had to be made. After careful consideration of all possible options for its future, it became clear that this was the step we needed to take.”

[Conservatism needs a new Weekly Standard untainted by Trump]

Prior to the meeting in which the plug received its official pulling, Editor in Chief Stephen F. Hayes told staff in an email: “This is a volatile time in American journalism and politics.
American conservative weekly opinion magazine The Weekly Standard announces that it will shut down this month after 23 years in print.