Why a former New York Times editor launched her own women-focused magazine episode artwork

EPISODE · Nov 14, 2025 · 1H 12M

Why a former New York Times editor launched her own women-focused magazine

from The Business of Content with Simon Owens · host Simon Owens

My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/   Francesca Donner has had a somewhat unusual journalism career in that she never aspired to be a reporter or have her own bylines; instead, she started out her career as an editor and rose through the ranks of places like the Wall Street Journal and New York Times. But though she wielded some influence at these publishers, she was always frustrated by the lack of female viewpoints, both in terms of who was writing the articles and who was being interviewed for them. So in 2022, she launched the Persistent, a sort of online magazine that's written entirely by women.    In a recent interview, Francesca talked about her experience working in mainstream media, how she's trying to build an interactive community with the Persistent, and why she's been hesitant to lock content behind a paywall.  

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Nov 14, 2025

Embed this episode

NOW PLAYING

Why a former New York Times editor launched her own women-focused magazine

0:00 1:12:07

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of The Business of Content with Simon Owens?

This episode is 1 hour and 12 minutes long.

When was this The Business of Content with Simon Owens episode published?

This episode was published on November 14, 2025.

Can I download this The Business of Content with Simon Owens episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!