New Owners Essentially Gutted Sports Illustrated

What a mess.

So Wednesday night the Wall Street Journal reported that Sports Illustrated was headed for mass layoffs after previous owner Meredith sold SI to a new company, which licensed the publishing rights to a group called TheMaven, run by a dude named Ross Levinsohn. A brief Googling reveals that this guy was booted from the LA Times after a newsroom revolt and has a pretty poor reputation in the industry.

It’s always a bummer to see this stuff happen at media outlets, and it feels like we write about a different place being hollowed out every other week. The Inquirer just went through another round of layoffs and buyouts while smaller newspapers in this area saw a change in ownership.

Sports Illustrated is another one of those outlets that was trying to evolve digitally in a world where magazines just aren’t what they used to be. Inevitably the business model changes; it’s just a matter of whether the new people in charge actually give a shit about journalism as much as money.

The layoff tweets started coming in last night, and I see headlines out there saying “half of the staff” was let go while the WaPo is reporting a 35-40% number. Here are some of the folks who didn’t make it:

After two years @SInow working the dream, I'm sad to say it’s over and I've been laid off. I'm so proud this was my first job out of school and so lucky to have been colleagues with these writers, editors and producers. If you're hiring or know of anything, please reach out.

— Charlotte Carroll (@charlottecrrll) October 3, 2019

I was among the layoffs at SI earlier today. Tough way to end, but it was a great 4 years. I have too many people to thank in a tweet, but thanks especially to @SI_ChrisStone @matt_dollinger and @SI_MarkBechtel.

Now we’ll see what’s next.

— Andrew Sharp (@andrewsharp) October 3, 2019

I’ve been laid off as part of the purge at @SINow. If you need a writer, reporter, podcaster, please let me know. Any journalism job at all. I’ll work in the mailroom. My DMs are open.

— Tim Rohan (@TimRohan) October 3, 2019

Fun while it lasted: Six weeks after being hired as a @SInow staff writer, I was part of today's mass layoffs. pic.twitter.com/cbtnQVuaXB

— Paul Lukas (@UniWatch) October 3, 2019

I loved my time at SI, and I loved getting to write about baseball for the best sports publication that’s ever existed. If you would like my words to grace your digital pages, DM me or hit me up at jatayler at gmail dot com.

— Jon Tayler, Smiling Politely (@JATayler) October 3, 2019

Getting to help lead Sports Illustrated after starting my career there as a fact-checker was a thrill of a lifetime, and beyond my dreams. I’m leaving after 3 years proud of the work we did and filled with love and admiration for this staff and this place.

— Mark McClusky (@markmcc) October 3, 2019

Four years ago I first stepped foot in SI's newsroom. Today is unfortunately my last day as an SI employee, as part of today's layoffs. It's been a devastating day in the office, but I'm looking forward to whatever's next. And I'll forever cherish the people at 225 Liberty.

— Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) October 3, 2019

So my time at @SInow has ended. SI was a dream job when I was a kid, so I will cherish my four-year run. It was amazing.

To be frank, I’m devastated I won’t be able to work with my friends anymore, and I have too many people to thank.

— David Sanchirico (@DavidSanchirico) October 3, 2019

So on and so forth. Apparently they’re going to hire 200 contractors (freelancers) in the coming days/months/whatever.