The Atlantic

The Covers Behind KING

The designer of our Martin Luther King Jr. special edition describes his inspiration.
Source: Courtesy of Bobby Martin

This article is a sample of the exclusive stories written for members of The Masthead, the membership program from The Atlantic (find out more).

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s death. To honor his legacy, The Atlantic published a special edition of the magazine. Featuring rarely published speeches by King; contemporary voices including Bernice King, John Lewis, and Jesmyn Ward; and excerpts from ’s own archives, the issue reflects on the man who defined the civil rights movement and how his message still resonates today. I talked with Bobby Martin, founding partner of The Original Champions of Design, who designed the issue, about the inspiration behind the cover.

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Atlantic

The Atlantic7 min readAmerican Government
Could South Carolina Change Everything?
For more than four decades, South Carolina has been the decisive contest in the Republican presidential primaries—the state most likely to anoint the GOP’s eventual nominee. On Saturday, South Carolina seems poised to play that role again. Since the
The Atlantic4 min read
Hayao Miyazaki’s Anti-war Fantasia
Once, in a windowless conference room, I got into an argument with a minor Japanese-government official about Hayao Miyazaki. This was in 2017, three years after the director had announced his latest retirement from filmmaking. His final project was
The Atlantic5 min readAmerican Government
What Nikki Haley Is Trying to Prove
This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here. Nikki Haley faces terrible odds in her home state of

Related Books & Audiobooks