In a digital ecosystem optimized for the 15-second attention span, the long-form essay is becoming a radical act of resistance.
By Julianne Hough — October 14, 2025
The average adult attention span has dropped to roughly eight seconds. We swipe, we scroll, we skim. But somewhere in the noise, a quiet revolution is taking place. Readers are rediscovering the pleasure of being possessed by a narrative—a story that refuses to let them go until the final page.
We are no longer reading to process; we are reading to skim. The long read is the antidote to that cultural amnesia.
— Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale
It costs more to produce a piece of quality journalism than it does to generate a viral tweet thread. Writers need time to interview, fact-check, and edit. Editors need time to mediate the chaos of information. This requires a financial model that values patience over immediacy.
Refly’s model is built on this premise. We pay our contributors fairly, we edit ruthlessly, and we publish on a fortnightly schedule that ensures every word matters. This isn't just about saving money; it's about saving the reader from the fatigue of bad content.
There is a unique satisfaction in finishing a long read. It feels like a workout for the mind, a way to stretch the cognitive muscles that have atrophied from decades of short-form consumption. When you finish a 2,000-word essay on the future of urbanism, you don't just have information; you have a framework for understanding the world.
Julianne Hough has been a Senior Editor at Refly since 2021. Previously, she worked as a cultural critic for The Atlantic and The New Yorker. She lives in Portland, Oregon.
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Marcus Chen — Oct 16, 2025
Finally, an argument for depth that doesn't sound like a nostalgic lament. This is exactly what the internet needs more of.
Elena Rodriguez — Oct 15, 2025
I couldn't agree more. I often find myself reading the same NYT article three times because the first time I was just scrolling.