Journalist Jerusalem Demsas has left The Atlantic to launch The Argument, a digital magazine that seeks to make “a positive, combative case for liberalism” and sharpen centre-left responses to the populist right. The outlet went live on 18 August with an editorial positioning liberal principles—individual freedoms, economic growth and equal rights—as the best antidote to what Demsas calls the current “post-liberal moment.” The start-up has raised about $4 million at a $20 million valuation from a mix of philanthropic and individual backers, including Arnold Ventures, Open Philanthropy, investor Rachel Pritzker and Stripe co-founder Patrick Collison’s Emergent Ventures. The funding is intended to give the site several years of runway while it experiments with subscription and sponsorship revenue. Alongside a core staff of writers Kelsey Piper and Jordan Weissmann, The Argument is drawing on a network of high-profile contributors such as Matt Yglesias, Derek Thompson, Kyla Scanlon and novelist Adelle Waldman. Lakshya Jain, co-founder of the polling outfit Split/Ticket, will lead an in-house data team to supply research for articles on housing, immigration, technology and other policy areas associated with the “abundance” school of liberal reform. The launch has already stirred debate across the opinion spectrum: supporters say the project fills a gap for evidence-based liberal advocacy, while critics argue it repackages familiar neoliberal ideas. Demsas says the magazine’s success will be measured not by ideological purity but by persuading readers that liberal governance can “deliver material prosperity and personal freedom.”