Byron Allen Is Buying a Controlling Stake in BuzzFeed
Jonah Peretti, BuzzFeed’s co-founder 20 years ago, will step down as chief executive and serve as its president of A.I.
Byron Allen, the comedian turned entrepreneur, is buying a controlling stake in BuzzFeed, the digital media company that pioneered virality on the internet.
Allen Family Digital, a company associated with Mr. Allen, will pay $120 million for a 52 percent stake in BuzzFeed, the companies said on Monday. Mr. Allen will become chief executive and chairman of BuzzFeed, replacing Jonah Peretti, the company’s founder, who will become president of artificial intelligence.
Related Knowledge Center: State of the business model
The traditional journalism business model has long since collapsed, and news organizations have shrunk or disappeared entirely. While a number of promising experiments are under way, the public has not shown a willingness to buy what news organizations are selling.