Vox Media is laying off staff as part of a reorg. Here’s the memo outlining the changes.

• Vox Media just cut some staff and reorganized its lifestyle brands.
• CEO Jim Bankoff said the company was responding to constant change in the media business.
• Thrillist will be operated by Eater, among other changes.

Vox Media just cut staff across its lifestyle brands, CEO Jim Bankoff announced in a memo to staff.

The parent of New York magazine, Vox, The Verge, and other popular media brands last laid off employees a year ago, when it cut 4% of staff. A Vox Media spokeswoman declined to say how many people were let go in the current reduction.

In the memo, which Business Insider obtained, Bankoff said the layoffs and “organizational changes” would impact Thrillist, PS, and Eater.

He said that, moving forward, Thrillist would be operated by Eater and that PS would “concentrate on its extensive footprint across social and video platforms with an even stronger emphasis on shopping.”

Vox Media got the lifestyle brands Thrillist and PS (previously named PopSugar) when it acquired fellow digital media company Group Nine in early 2022. The deal was part of an ongoing consolidation of digital-media outlets to better compete for ad dollars with Google and Facebook. Digital publishing has generally struggled as Big Tech platforms have dominated digital ad spending.

Bankoff said in the memo that Vox Media would continue to focus on areas where it sees the most opportunity, including building direct audiences and its Vox Media Podcast Network. Vox Media also recently put tech-focused The Verge behind a paywall.

Here’s the full memo from Bankoff:

Team,

Today, we’re implementing role eliminations and organizational changes across our lifestyle brands (Thrillist, PS and Eater), Product, and the Media Production & Technology organization. All affected employees have been notified and are receiving transition support.

Each of our brands faces distinct market opportunities and challenges. As you know, the pace of change is accelerating for media businesses and it is essential to our success that we continuously evaluate how and where we invest to serve our audiences best to advance the long term health of our business.

In particular, the ways audiences are interacting with our Thrillist and PS brands have changed and we must adapt. Going forward, Thrillist will be operated by Eater, on a similar model to Punch, leveraging shared leadership and resources. PS will concentrate on its extensive footprint across social and video platforms with an even stronger emphasis on shopping. Eater is reorganizing its cities coverage into a regional model in order to most efficiently serve its audience’s needs. The Product and Media Production & Technology organizations are being restructured to meet the current needs and scale of the business.

Throughout our history, we’ve led the digital media landscape because we’ve been willing to adapt and evolve as technology and the way people consume content change. These actions, while difficult, are consistent with our strategic priority to deepen audience connections to the brands and franchises that drive loyalty while ensuring our financial strength. As was the case this year, in 2025 we will continue to invest in our business where we see the clearest opportunities: editorial and user experiences that build loyal, direct audiences; a high-value advertising proposition based on unique intellectual property; strong brands that command audience attention; leading multimedia productions like we’re building with the Vox Media Podcast Network; and consumer-direct businesses to diversify revenue streams and grow recurring revenue.

While our focus on improving our financial strength is always a priority, this year we have made meaningful progress to ensure our long-term profitability. This has meant difficult decisions and ongoing financial discipline about where we’re investing and where we’re pulling back. To our departing colleagues, I’m grateful for your contributions. To everyone at Vox Media, thank you for your continued commitment to our work.

Jim