James Murdoch’s Lupa Acquires Vox.com and New York Magazine From Vox Media

Vox Media cofounder and CEO Jim Bankoff says the company’s decision to sell part of its business to James Murdoch is meant to strengthen the brands that remain, not signal a retreat from digital media. In a deal announced this week, Murdoch’s investment firm Lupa will acquire New York magazine, the Vox Media Podcast Network, and the Vox.com website, while Bankoff will stay on to lead the businesses being sold. The agreement does not include Vox Media’s broader portfolio of brands.

Bankoff told Business Insider that the transaction came after a deliberate review of the company’s assets and priorities. The goal, he said, was to identify the properties with the strongest long-term fit under new ownership while allowing Vox Media to concentrate on the rest of its business. He described the sale as a way to create more focus and flexibility at a time when the digital media industry is still adjusting to slower advertising growth, changing audience habits, and pressure on profit margins.

The deal also has symbolic weight because of the Murdoch name. James Murdoch, the son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, has had a long and public break with his father’s conservative-leaning news empire. As reported by Politico and the Independent, his purchase puts him in charge of liberal-leaning outlets that have often operated in a different political and cultural lane from News Corp’s flagship properties. That contrast has drawn attention because it resembles, in broad strokes, the kind of ideological rivalry dramatized in the television series “Succession,” though this deal is a real business transaction and not a family drama.

For Vox Media, the sale comes after more than a decade of rapid rise and later recalibration. The company built a strong reputation during the digital boom with brands that became influential in politics, technology, and culture. But like many media companies that grew quickly online, it has had to adapt as the economics of digital publishing changed. Selling New York magazine and the podcast network may give the remaining company more room to invest in areas where it believes it can still grow.

Murdoch, for his part, said the acquisition fits with his broader interest in “ambitious journalism” and in media companies that shape cultural conversation. Lupa has been active in media and technology investments, and this purchase gives it control of several well-known editorial brands with loyal audiences. Bankoff said the businesses being sold are going to a buyer who values their editorial identity and potential, while he remains focused on the next phase for Vox Media.

What happens next will depend on how smoothly the ownership transition unfolds and how the different parts of Vox Media perform separately. Employees, readers, listeners, and advertisers will be watching to see whether the new structure helps the brands maintain their influence in a crowded and still unsettled media market.