Condé Nast is folding its music publication Pitchfork into its men’s-focused magazine GQ, Chief Content Officer Anna Wintour announced on Wednesday.
The move will result in an undetermined number of layoffs at the website, including the loss of Editor-in-Chief Puja Patel.
“Today we are evolving our Pitchfork team structure by bringing the team into the GQ organization,” Wintour wrote to staffers in a memo, which was obtained by The Daily Beast and first reported by Semafor. “This decision was made after a careful evaluation of Pitchfork’s performance and what we believe is the best path forward for the brand so that our coverage of music can continue to thrive within the company.”
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Wintour said the two brands “have unique and valuable ways that they approach music journalism” and she thanked Patel for being “a wonderful colleague and advocate for the brand.”
“There are no additional changes at this time as we focus on our internal team structure and operations,” Wintour wrote.
A Pitchfork spokesperson did not immediately respond to questions about the extent of layoffs or its transfer to the GQ brand. GQ does not currently have a dedicated “music” vertical on its website.
A statement from the Pitchfork Union said: “Pitchfork Union and The NewsGuild of New York categorically condemn the Condé Nast announcement Wednesday that it plans to lay off eight Guild-represented members as part of an internal corporate reorganization that will “fold” Pitchfork into GQ magazine.
“Condé Nast provided no further information about the future of the premiere music publication, demonstrating once again a lack of regard for the workers who have contributed to the company’s success.”
The news came after a wave of layoffs across Condé publications last month, resulting in the loss of 270 workers across brands such as WIRED and The New Yorker. Those layoffs came as various other media brands like Vox Media, the Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, and The Messenger saw staff exits, due in part to declining advertising revenue and audiences’ shifting news consumption habits.
Pitchfork features editor Jill Mapes confirmed on X that she was among Wednesday’s layoffs.
“I've referred to my job at pitchfork as being on a ferris wheel at closing time, just waiting for them to yank me down,” Mapes wrote. “After nearly 8 [years], mass layoffs got me. glad we could spend that time trying to make it a less dude-ish place just for GQ to end up at the helm.”
