CBS News
Vice Media to lay off hundreds of workers as digital media outlets implode
Vice Media will no longer publish content on its website, with the former digital media darling joining BuzzFeed in slashing additional staff this week.
Vice also plans to lay off several hundred workers as it shifts a studio-only business model, CEO Bruce Dixon told employees in a memo delivered late Thursday, the Associated Press reported. The women’s lifestyle site Refinery 29 would continue to run, with Vice in advanced talks to sell the business, Dixon told staffers.
Vice filed for bankruptcy last May before being sold for $350 million to a consortium led by private equity firm Fortress Investment Group, which had been listed as its biggest creditor. Fortress is majority-owned by an Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment.
Vice didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Dixon’s missive underlines the startling descent for a media firm once acclaimed for its reporting and emulated by larger industry players eager to reach younger audiences. What started off as an alt-music and culture magazine in the 1990s in Montreal at its height had a market valuation of $5.7 billion, before difficulties began piling up, including management conflicts, a sharp slowdown in online ad spending and plunge in traffic stemming from social media platforms.
What is a WARN notice?
In New York, private companies with 50 or more employees are legally required to give at least 90 days notice before a mass layoff. That’s defined as involving at least 25 full-time employees who represent at least a third of workers during a six-month period, or at least 250 full-time workers.
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act also requires employers to provide advance warnings before plants are temporarily or permanently closed or their operations relocated.
Already thinned by multiple rounds of layoffs, BuzzFeed this week said it would sell Complex, a startup company known for covering pop culture, and cut an additional 16% of its staff. Vice and BuzzFeed are among a number of digital outlets announcing layoffs this year. The Messenger closed abruptly in January and Business Insider slashed its staff by 8%.
Traditional media outlets have also pared their ranks, with most major news publishers confronting sharp drops in online traffic as more online users turned to alternatives including TikTok and Instagram. The list of media players announcing layoffs over the past year includes Condé Nast; Los Angeles Times; Paramount Global, the owner of CBS News; Vox Media; Wall Street Journal; and Washington Post.
Media companies announced more than 21,000 job cuts in in 2023, up 467% from the previous year, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Of those layoffs, nearly 3,100 were in digital, broadcast and print news.
—The Associated Press contributed to this report.
CBS News
Tropical Storm Milton forms in Gulf; forecast to strengthen into hurricane headed toward Florida
Tropical Storm Milton has formed in the Gulf of Mexico and is forecast to strengthen into a hurricane headed toward Florida with possible impacts to its western coast, the National Hurricane Center said on Saturday. Maximum sustained winds are expected to be at 40 mph with higher gusts and Milton is currently moving north-northeast, NHC said in an advisory.
Milton is forecast to undergo a period of rapid intensification before it makes landfall as a Category 2 hurricane across Florida’s west coast, CBS News Miami reported.
The forecast comes a little more than a week after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida and across the Southeast, killing more than 200 people and causing immense destruction. President Biden on Thursday took an aerial tour of Florida’s Big Bend where Helene struck as a Category 4 storm. Hundreds of people are still missing and Mr. Biden said the work to rebuild will cost “billions of dollars” as communities suffer still without power, running water and passable roads.
NOAA
Milton is forecast to move across the southwestern Gulf of Mexico through Sunday night then across the south-central Gulf on Monday and Tuesday before reaching Florida’s west coast by the middle of the week, NHC said. Heavy rain is possible in the region starting Sunday into Monday, CBS Miami reported, and more rain and heavy winds will most likely arrive on Wednesday. Hurricane and storm surge watches will most likely be required for portions of Florida starting Sunday, the National Hurricane Center said.
Along with the heavy rainfall, the hurricane center said to expect risks of flooding.
Residents in the area should ensure they have a hurricane plan in place, the National Hurricane Center said, follow the advice of local officials and check back for forecast updates.
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A new Barbie has joined Mattel’s lineup of inclusive dolls. The first “Diwali doll” was announced by the toymaker on Friday, a few weeks shy of the Hindu holiday of Diwali, also known as the festival of lights.
The festival, which lasts for five days, is marked on Western calendars to begin on Nov. 1, but some celebrations start on Oct. 31.
The doll, created in collaboration with fashion designer Anita Dongre, features traditional elements including the lehenga skirt, floral print and golden shoes, according to Mattel’s website. The doll is available at major retailers for $40.
“The look is infused with beauty and symbolism to rejoice in victory of light over darkness with contemporary silhouettes,” the description reads for the Diwali doll.
Lalit Agarwal, country manager for Mattel India, said in a news release that through the Diwali doll, the brand is hoping to showcase “India’s vibrant cultural heritage on a global stage while continuing to celebrate the power and beauty of diversity.”
Earlier this year, Mattel announced the first-ever blind Barbie doll and a Black Barbie with Down syndrome.
In addition, to celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8 and Barbie’s 65th birthday on March 9, the doll brand announced it was adding new dolls to its Role Models collection, based on real-life singers and actresses from around the world. They’re not for sale – a one-of-a-kind doll was made for each of the honored women.
The dolls are meant to introduce “girls to remarkable women’s stories to show them you can be anything,” according to Mattel.
