*Days after signing with talent agency WME to expand its digital presence, Ebony magazine is cutting nearly a third of its staff and combining editorial operations with sister publication Jet in Los Angeles, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The longtime Chicago-based magazine, which has been covering the African-American experience since its launch in 1945, is laying off about 10 of 35 employees, including editor-in-chief Kyra Kyles, reports the Tribune.
Tracey Ferguson, who became the Los Angeles-based editor of Jet in February, will oversee both magazines going forward.
“There was a significant consolidation of the editorial staff as well as some of the digital staff,” Michael Gibson, co-founder and chairman of Ebony owner CVG Group, said Friday.
Ebony Media will retain a downsized Chicago office after the magazine leaves for the West Coast, Gibson said. Linda Johnson Rice, newly renamed Ebony Media CEO, will remain in her role and will be based in Chicago.
Johnson Publishing, the family-owned business that founded Ebony and Jet, sold both publications to Texas-based private equity firm CVG Group for an undisclosed price in May 2016. Since then, Ebony has struggled to maintain its presence under the new owners, plagued by everything from delayed subscription deliveries to unpaid freelance writers.
While new issues of Ebony have continued to hit newsstands, subscribers haven’t received copies of the magazine since the November issue, Gibson said, a problem related to a change in printers.
We Publish News 24/7. Don’t Miss A Story. Click HERE to SUBSCRIBE to Our Newsletter Now!
