BuzzFeed is shutting down what remains of its award-winning news department, signalling the end of an era for a website that once promised to upend the industry.
BuzzFeed raised hundreds of millions of pounds from investors in the early 2010s as it surfed the explosion of social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to distribute content. In addition to producing viral content such as quizzes and lists it invested in original news reporting, in the belief this would attract a higher quality of advertiser.
Other similar online news sites – including Vox and Vice – that boomed during the 2010s have also struggled as audiences and advertisers moved away from social media and towards video services such as YouTube and TikTok. Insider – formerly known as Business Insider – also announced it was making substantial job cuts on Thursday.
As part of the changes, Peretti announced that two leading executives have made the decision to leave the company.