Although it has been asserted that the name "Magnum" was chosen because the founding members always drank a bottle of champagne during the first meetings, Russell Miller writes: It was . . . presumably agreed by those present that Magnum was a fine new name for such a bold new venture, indicative as it was of greatness in its literal Latin translation, toughness in its gun connotation and celebration in its champagne mode.
Iako se tvrdilo da je naziv "Magnum" izabran zbog toga što su utemeljitelji agencije uvijek pili šampanjac tijekom prvih sastanaka, Russell Miller je napisao: To su se... vjerojatno složili prisutni da je Magnum divno novo ime za tako odvažni novi poduhvat, znakovit zbog veličine u svojem doslovnom prijevodu s latinskog, čvrstoće u konotativnom značenju riječi pištolj i proslave u obliku šampanjca.