BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti announced that the company will shut down its news operation and reduce its workforce by 15%. The decision comes as a result of the impacts of the pandemic, tech recession, and decelerating advertising market. In an internal email obtained by The Independent, Peretti admitted that the company had been unable to overcome these challenges, and that the leadership team could have performed better.
Peretti noted that BuzzFeed News will no longer operate as a standalone organization, and that the company will engage with the News Guild about cost reduction plans and the impact on affected union members. However, Peretti also stated that BuzzFeed properties HuffPost and BuzzFeed.com will open up a number of roles for members of BuzzFeed News.
Moving forward, HuffPost will be the single news brand for BuzzFeed, as it is profitable and has a loyal direct front page audience. The news of BuzzFeed's decision caused the company's stock price to plummet by 16% to 78 cents.
