--- title: The Onion Predicted TIME's Ted Cruz Cover description: On March 23, 2015, The Onion published an article warning TIME subscribers to prepare for an issue featuring a close-up of Ted Cruz. canonical: https://time.com/4284028/ted-cruz-cover-prediction-the-onion/ author: Megan McCluskey article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-04-07T11:17:13.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-05T08:50:00.128Z og:title: Yes, The Onion Called It: Here's Ted Cruz on the Cover of TIME og:description: It's time for the Republican's close-up og:url: https://time.com/4284028/ted-cruz-cover-prediction-the-onion/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5a32c0d3f92501f2/69888e082dce0125849e886b/final-trump.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2363 og:image:height: 1329 og:image:alt: Ted Cruz Time Magazine Cover 160418 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Yes, The Onion Called It: Here's Ted Cruz on the Cover of TIME twitter:description: It's time for the Republican's close-up twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5a32c0d3f92501f2/69888e082dce0125849e886b/final-trump.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Yes, the Onion Called It: Here's Ted Cruz on the Cover of TIME > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Brief (Washington politics, twice weekly), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=c1fb1b29-0579-4f7a-8c65-93ceb40f248a&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Watch a Ted Cruz Rally In Super Slow Motion [Watch (HLS stream): Watch a Ted Cruz Rally In Super Slow Motion](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/GyLBLKo0.m3u8) (2:28)  _Published 2016-02-24. This video captures Sen. Ted Cruz at nearly 1000 frames per second._  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Apr 7, 2016 11:17 AM UTC  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Apr 7, 2016 11:17 AM UTC Back in March 2015, when Donald Trump’s presidential campaign was just a twinkle in the real estate tycoon’s eye, Texas Senator Ted Cruz became the first major Republican to announce his candidacy for President of the United States. Our friends at [the Onion](http://theonion.com) knew what would happen next. On the day of Cruz’s announcement, the satirical site [published an article](http://www.theonion.com/article/time-magazine-subscribers-brace-for-inevitable-iss-38281) warning TIME subscribers to prepare for the inevitable: the day when we featured a close-up photograph of the Senator on the cover. Well, Onion editors, today is that day. The prophetic publication did get one thing wrong. While the Onion claimed that TIME would call Cruz “The Firebrand” or “The Game Changer,” this week’s cover takes a different route.  Photograph by Marco Grob for TIME **Read More:** [Ted Cruz Embraces Economic Populism in Interview](http://time.com/4283539/ted-cruz-interview-economic-populism-working-class/?xid=homepage) “The customarily precise reporting in this article once again proved why The Onion is the most accurate, most trusted, and most infallible publication humankind has ever known,” the publication said in a statement to TIME. “We are committed to providing our 12 billion readers in over 500 countries with disturbingly comprehensive news coverage and upholding the very highest standards of journalistic excellence that all other lesser publications—such as your own—have long since abandoned. We look forward in the weeks and months ahead to subsuming your publication’s market share and draining whatever relevance it may still possess.” ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] Why are conservatives coming together like never before? [ MUSIC ] Because the stakes The threats to our country have never been greater. 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