As Condé Nast announced its plans to fold media brand Teen Vogue into Vogue.com earlier today, the NewsGuild of New York and Condé Union said they “strongly condemn” the merger and related layoffs, slamming the decision as “a move that is clearly designed to blunt the award-winning magazine’s insightful journalism at a time when it is needed the most.”
In an editorial letter from the Vogue business team, the flagship magazine maintained the “transition” is “part of a broader push to expand the Vogue ecosystem,” adding that the lauded publication — which caters to a young, progressive and politically attuned audience — “will remain a distinct editorial property, with its own identity and mission.” The goal is to offer readers a “more unified” experience across Condé Nast’s titles, the statement read.
As a result, Chloe Malle, Vogue’s head of editorial content, who was appointed to the role in September following Anna Wintour’s exit, will now oversee Teen Vogue. Previous editor-in-chief Versha Sharma will be departing the company.
Teen Vogue’s consolidation into Vogue.com follows Vogue Business’s move to the platform last week.
“We are looking forward to this new chapter. In our increasingly fragmented media landscape, making all Vogue — Teen Vogue and Vogue Business — accessible in one place sets us up for growth,” Malle said in a statement.
In response, Condé Union — organizing via NewsGuild, which also reps unions from The Atlantic, The Daily Beast, NBC News, The New York Times, New York Magazine and fellow Condé Nast subsidiaries like The New Yorker and Pitchfork — blasted the company’s decision to lay off six employees, a majority of whom it said are employees with marginalized identities, continuing a “trend” of firing members who are women, people of color, queer and/or trans. One affected employee is Teen Vogue‘s politics editor, leaving the publication with no writers nor editors who cover the beat — ahead of what is likely to be a momentous grassroots-led victory for New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani.
“As of today, only one woman of color remains on the editorial staff at Teen Vogue. Condé leadership owes us — and Teen Vogue’s readership — answers. We will get those answers. And we fight for our rights as workers with a collective bargaining agreement as we fight for the work we do, and the people we do it for,” the union’s statement concluded.
Launched in 2003 as a sister publication to Vogue, the formerly in-print outfit originally focused mainly on celebrity and fashion coverage aimed at young women and girls. Former EIC Elaine Welteroth, who was tapped in 2016, is largely credited with spearheading the site’s foray into more in-depth political and social justice-oriented coverage. Since then, the outlet has continually ramped up reporting on climate change, voting issues, President Donald Trump, reproductive rights, Gaza and Mamdani’s campaign.
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