Big Layoffs Come to Progressive Online Media Conglomerate, Vox

According to Vox Media’s furious Twitter statement, “around seven per cent” of its workforce will be laid off according to a furious statement made by the union account.

They used the term “furious” for themselves. That’s not editorializing.

Around 130 people receive pink slips.

In a memo to employees, CEO Jim Bankoff stated that “Unfortunately, due to the economic climate, it’s not possible for us to sustain projects or areas of our business that haven’t performed as expected.” The layoffs will affect “several different departments across Revenue, Editorial and Operations” and “core services.”

According to right-leaning Twitter, the consensus seems to be “Learn how to code”.

The union has not provided any information about Vox Media’s infuriating handling. Perhaps it’s a union’s job not to be angry about such things, or perhaps Vox’s progressive leadership is acting badly. Keep your eyes peeled for more information.

Vox Media’s sites are: The Verge, Polygon and Eater. New York magazine is also available. Perhaps most famously, Vox Media, which was founded in 2011 to give the correct explanation for complex problems — naturally, from a progressive perspective.

Although the company isn’t publicly traded, it does not appear to be financially sound. They are very top-heavy, and this is not sustainable. This is something I have experienced firsthand, so I know a lot about it.

When PJTV launched in 2008, I was proud to have been a part of it. It remained that way until the studio went dark eight years later.

But PJTV’s problem lay right there in the word studio.

Los Angeles had a nice one, with a full crew and the best equipment money could buy. A mini TV studio was built in my basement. It included a Sony video conference camera and a T1 line-equipped dedicated T1 line. The director in Los Angeles remotely controlled it.

It was expensive to operate that studio.

The initial days of internet video were difficult because there wasn’t enough market for it to be worthwhile. Video outlets that eventually succeeded were smaller operations.

Despite this, I was able to work with amazing people whom I would not have otherwise. I will always be grateful for that.

Vox Media is now more popular than PJTV. They are big and growing. However, at least some of their growth appears to have been through acquisitions (like New York Magazine), which is another costly proposition.

Bad times can strike any organization. As shown by recent announcements of layoffs at highly profitable companies like Alphabet or Microsoft, it is clear that bad times are coming for many corporations and their employees.

However, this outsider’s perspective shows that the very smart people who provide the progressive explanations aren’t very good at being lean, mean and profitable.