BuzzFeed News Shuts Down, Firing 15% of All Staff

BuzzFeed is shutting down its news division as part of its cost-cutting measures, which include laying off some of its workers.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Buzzfeed Inc., Jonah Peretti, informed the team that the layoffs include other departments in the firm, such as tech, content, and business. It is worth mentioning that the latest downsizing is on top of the recent job cut early this year.

BuzzFeed News Shuts Down

According to ABC News, the Pulitzer Prize-winning online publication, BuzzFeed News, is bidding farewell soon. No less than the big boss of BuzzFeed, Peretti, announced the additional layoff across other departments.

In a memo, the BuzzFeed Inc. boss explains to his employees why they had to dismantle the news department. Peretti disclosed that he "overinvested" in the newsmaking division. However, the lack of financial support made it sustainable to operate.

The chief executive says, "We know that the changes and improvements we are making today are necessary to build a better future."

The looming demise of BuzzFeed News comes amid the significant drop in digital advertising. Tech giants like Google and Facebook are also heavily affected by this trend.

New York Magazine notes that the editor-in-chief of the new division, Karolina Waclawiak, has recently encouraged its staffers to write more stories to grow their views rather than focusing on long-form content.

Meanwhile, former BuzzFeed News editor, Ben Smith, says that the death of the publication "really marks the end of the marriage between news and social media."

BuzzFeed News has delivered investigative and political news in its heydays, apart from the listicles and memes that flooded social media giants like Facebook and Twitter. Poynter said it even earned the outlet a Pulitzer Prize award-winning piece.

New York Mag points out that BuzzFeed heavily depends on going viral thanks to services like the Mark Zuckerberg-owned social network. And as such, an algorithm tweak on the platform could easily affect its traffic. Not to mention that these social media behemoths started getting more of the revenue from digital advertising, pushing publications to start saving themselves through a paywall. Yet, BuzzFeed News continued publishing its content for free.

BuzzFeed Layoffs 15% of the Workforce

The newsroom team is part of the latest job cut, accounting for 60 employees. BuzzFeed is also firing another 60 workers from divisions like tech and content. In total, the latest downsizing affects 120 staffers in the company.

Peretti blames the bleak economic situation for the additional layoffs affecting 15% of the workforce.

Besides the job cuts, some BuzzFeed top brass is also saying goodbye. The chief operating officer, Christian Baesler, and the chief revenue officer, Edgar Hernandez, also leave their offices. The two helped with the current restructuring of the company.