James Murdoch buys Vox Media assets in more than $300 million deal

James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems is buying New York magazine, Vox.com and the Vox Media Podcast Network for more than $300 million, a deal that gives one of media’s most recognizable family names a new foothold in digital publishing just as the business is fragmenting under financial strain.

The transaction will carve Vox Media into two independent companies. Jim Bankoff will stay on as chief executive of the company that keeps the Vox Media name and includes New York magazine, the podcast network and Vox. Ryan Pauley will lead the separate company, which will house Eater, Popsugar, SB Nation, The Dodo and The Verge. The companies said they expect the deal to close in four to six weeks, pending customary closing conditions.

For Murdoch, the bet is on the assets that still command attention and advertising leverage in a crowded market. The purchase includes New York magazine’s strongest verticals, The Cut, Vulture, Intelligencer, The Strategist, Curbed and Grub Street, along with Vox.com and audio brands such as Today, Explained, Pivot, Criminal and Where Should We Begin? Vox Media said its podcast network has been its fastest-growing business over the past five years, and it pointed to Edison Research data showing podcasts now reach 58% of Americans monthly, including two out of three adults ages 18 to 54.

Murdoch said the acquisition “aligns well” with Lupa’s existing holdings and reflects an interest in “the forward edge of culture” and a commitment to “ambitious journalism and agenda-setting conversations.” Bankoff said he was “thrilled to partner” with Murdoch and described the properties as having strong relevance, quality and growth potential. The language underscores the logic of the split: prestige magazines, niche digital brands and hit podcasts still look valuable even as broader ad-supported media has been squeezed.

The deal also lands after years of turbulence at Vox Media. On Jan. 9, 2025, the Vox Media Union said 18% of its union colleagues at Vox.com had been laid off, following prior cuts at Thrillist, Eater and PS, along with other unannounced reductions. Vox Media also carried out additional layoffs in a January 2025 reorganization.

There is sharp historical symmetry in New York’s return to the Murdoch orbit. Rupert Murdoch bought New York magazine’s parent company in 1977 and sold it in 1991, after a fierce staff revolt that became one of the defining labor dramas in New York media. Nearly four decades later, another Murdoch is back at the table, and the deal renews the old question of how much editorial independence can survive when family capital re-enters journalism at scale.