I had known beforehand that American Rifleman, the publication of the NRA, was going to go quarterly from monthly, but it was still a bit of a shock when it happened. So was losing a couple of the NRA’s other great magazines, Shooting Illustrated and the one devoted entirely to gun owners’ civil rights issues, America’s First Freedom. It was still painful to see “Final Issue” emblazoned on the cover of the latter.
It’s not just about the National Rifle Association’s internal issues and attendant reduction in membership. The whole periodical publishing industry is feeling the impact of greater printing costs and other overhead issues. Fourth quarter 2025 saw the last issues of the first newsstand gun magazine, GUNS, and the first magazine dedicated solely to pistols and revolvers, American Handgunner, which debuted in 1955 and 1976 respectively. The departures all hit home. I’ve been reading American Rifleman, a publication for NRA members only, since I was a little boy, buying used copies for a dime apiece at Bill Dunn’s Sport Shop and Sprague’s Gun Shop, both of which are also long gone. I became a member of the NRA in my teens and a life member shortly thereafter. I wrote for GUNS since the late ‘70s, mostly their handgun column, and for Handgunner from its first issue to its last.
All continue as digital, online publications. But somehow, it’s just not the same.
The loss of gun magazines, combined with YouTube’s prejudicial censorship, makes it even harder for new gun owners to acquire detailed information on maintenance, repair, reloading, etc…
My understanding is that the Rifleman will still be monthly but in a digital format. The quarterly issues will be a rollup of three monthly issues in dead tree format. The NRA also says that some of the features of Shooting Illustrated which was my magazine will be incorporated. We’ll see on that. For the record, I am precisely 9 days younger than you so don’t go calling me a digital native. SI was the only periodical I was still getting in dead tree so it was pretty much inevitable. For that matter, about 90% of my books are now digital.
I know the reasons for the loss of Guns Magazine and American Handgunner, but the loss of several of their veteran writers this past year to death didn’t help them. And RIP to those gentlemen that most of us know.
Well, I guess when you piss away the revenue you get from the membership on lavish lifestyles for the leadership and massive legal fees paid to blatantly anti-gun attorneys for lawsuits that should have never been necessary in the first place, I guess something’s gotta give.
I still have a life membership that I bought many years ago, but I haven’t otherwise donated a dime to the NRA in years, and will not until I’m thoroughly confident that I can trust that money to be used in furtherance of the gun rights and gun owning community rather than as a slush fund for a few people at the top.
The organization lost my trust. It took a lot for them to do that. It will take even more for them to gain it back.
I share your sentiment.
There are two independent issues: the internet displacing paper; and, the NRA’s failure to manage itself. We must not conflate these two.
If NRA’s publications have something to offer, they will survive and perform their role in digital format. Inasmuch as NRA’s management has disappointed its membership none of us should be surprised that its publications’ editorial content have not impressed us. My Rifleman copy has gone straight to the trash for years.
The NRA’s board has slowly reconstituted. Nevertheless, I remain unimpressed that the board’s decisions have turned the organization around.
Foremost in my mind is the nominating committee system. Intrinsically, this system guarantees that the old guard will remain in power. That’s how the NRA failed. That’s how the NRA will fail in the future.
I’d rather see a system where candidates for the board are nominated by a committee composed exclusively of state affiliates who are not NRA board members. Such a system would protect the NRA from a take-over by some radical faction. And, it would protect the NRA from the cronyism that perpetuated the last disaster(s).
I read my NRA magazines (subscribed to American Rifleman, American Hunter, and America’s 1st Freedom), then give them to the students in my hunter education classes. Kinda hard to do with a digital copy.
I’m not pleased either. Hell, it was through one of the above that I found you in the first place, Mas. In print. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it 😡
All of this leaves us more dependent on phones, computers, and TV. Shockingly most new phones now comes with eSimm card instead of previous replaceable ones which were user controlled. The difference is privacy- where you go can be easily tracked and more. Content is dictated by unwanted “Updates”, not by the so-called owner. More, lots more.
Electronic version of gun magazines are fine but what you read can easily be monitored.
Lots of concerns for all freedom lovers.
I’m an old fart, I like books and magazines, you don’t need batteries!! I hate that the Rifleman is going quarterly!!! I HATE digital books or magazines too…., damned young whippersnappers!!!
I hated to see them go digital, hopefully the quarterly paper version will be decent. One of my joys in life was a quiet Sunday, a big cup of coffee and paper gun ‘rags’ to read! I only have a few paper ones left, seems like Field & Stream and Outdoor Life were the leading edge on going digital. It kinda sucks when you are paid up on a paper edition for 4-5 years, and then find out they are going digital next month. As for Mark & your comment about YT, you of course are right-on. Rumble has a few gun channels I follow, they are still freedom loving.
I agree that it is indeed criminal the way that “FORMER” NRA leadership spent money like a drunken sailor. The new leadership at NRA is a different beast, and are doing their best to right the ship. We need to support any and all entities willing to safeguard our rights.
Gun rights are eroding at a fantastic pace, my home state of Virginia is about to become “The People’s Republic of Virginia”. It seems that Spanberger/Jones are in a race to beat even New Jersey to the bottom of the barrel.
Digital book & magazine formats just don’t cut it for me. 😢