CeeLo Green, Adam Levine, Christina Aguilera, and Blake Shelton, on the cover of the February 1, 2012, issue of Rolling Stone
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Categories | Popular culture |
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Publisher | Jann Wenner |
Total circulation (2014) |
1,468,263 |
Founder | Jann Wenner, Ralph J. Gleason |
First issue | November 9, 1967 |
Company | Wenner Media LLC |
Country | United States |
Based in | New York City |
Language | English |
Website | rollingstone |
ISSN | 0035-791X |
Rolling Stone is an American biweekly magazine that focuses on popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner, who is still the magazine's publisher, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its musical coverage and for political reporting by Hunter S. Thompson. In the 1990s, the magazine shifted focus to a younger readership interested in youth-oriented television shows, film actors, and popular music. In recent years, it has resumed its traditional mix of content.
Rolling Stone Press is the magazine's associated book publishing imprint.
Rolling Stone magazine was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and Ralph Gleason. To get it off the ground, Wenner borrowed $7,500 from his own family and from the parents of his soon-to-be wife, Jane Schindelheim. The first issue carried a cover date of November 9, 1967, and was in newspaper format with a lead article on the Monterey Pop Festival. The cover price was 25¢ (equivalent to $1.80 in 2016).
In the first issue, Wenner explained that the title of the magazine referred to the 1950 blues song, "Rollin' Stone", recorded by Muddy Waters, the rock and roll band the Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan's hit single "Like a Rolling Stone". Some authors have attributed the name solely to Dylan's hit single: "At [Ralph] Gleason's suggestion, Wenner named his magazine after a Bob Dylan song."Rolling Stone initially identified with and reported the hippie counterculture of the era. However, it distanced itself from the underground newspapers of the time, such as Berkeley Barb, embracing more traditional journalistic standards and avoiding the radical politics of the underground press. In the very first edition, Wenner wrote that Rolling Stone "is not just about the music, but about the things and attitudes that music embraces".