The parent company of the website Jezebel announced on Thursday that it was shutting down the site and laying off its staff, citing economic headwinds and shifting audience priorities.
The layoffs will affect 23 people, including the Jezebel team, Jim Spanfeller, the chief executive of G/O Media, said in a memo to the company’s staff. He also announced that the G/O Media editorial director, Merrill Brown, would be departing the company.
“While G/O Media is a lean, nimble organization, we are not immune to the economic headwinds rattling our business,” Mr. Spanfeller wrote.
“Unfortunately, our business model and the audiences we serve across our network did not align with Jezebel’s,” he added.
Mr. Spanfeller said that G/O Media had tried to sell Jezebel and that it had talked with “over two dozen potential buyers,” but did not find a new home for the site.
He added that “over the longer term, we will be adding new positions with updated or perhaps new goals in mind.”
Jezebel was launched in 2007 by Anna Holmes, its first editor in chief, as part of Gawker Media, and quickly established itself as a leader in publishing feminist commentary and articles focused on issues that affect women. Its writers were known for their pithy prose and quirky story angles.
Jezebel sparked discussions about gender, sexism and power that have since become a larger part of the mainstream conversation.
G/O Media owns and operates several digital media outlets, including Gizmodo, Quartz and Deadspin.
This is a developing story.
