James Murdoch, who walked away from his family’s media empire over editorial disagreements, is shelling out more than $300 million to acquire Vox Media’s New York Magazine, its podcast division, and the left-leaning explanatory journalism site Vox.com. The deal folds these properties into Lupa Systems, the investment company Murdoch founded in 2019 after resigning from News Corp’s board.
The acquisition brings New York Magazine back into the Murdoch family orbit in an unexpected twist. Rupert Murdoch owned the publication in the late 1970s before selling it in 1991. Vox Media picked it up in 2019 for just $105 million, meaning James Murdoch is paying roughly triple what the magazine fetched just six years ago.
Still, that price tag represents a significant fall from grace for Vox Media overall. The company was reportedly valued at around $1 billion back in 2015. Sources familiar with the deal told the New York Times the current acquisition price exceeds $300 million but the exact figure remains undisclosed.
The timing raises eyebrows given New York Magazine’s ongoing plagiarism scandal. Columnist Ross Barkan stands accused by Washington Post reporter Drew Harwell of copying portions of Harwell’s Daily Wire hit piece. The allegations point to identical phrases, including “In the run-up to the 2020 presidential election,” along with similar framing throughout. Both stories reportedly opened with claims about Ben Shapiro’s prominence in conservative media and the Daily Wire’s dominance of news feeds. The magazine is currently conducting an internal investigation.
James Murdoch appears undeterred by the controversy, framing his purchase as a bet on authenticity in an age of artificial content. He argues that amid content “slop” and “packaged media,” audiences will increasingly turn to podcasts that feel genuine. The podcast division generated $80 million in revenue last year and features hosts including tech journalist Kara Swisher and tennis star Maria Sharapova. Programming spans politics, technology, sports, personal finance, and self-help.
New York Magazine publishes both print and digital content through verticals including The Cut, Grub Street, and Vulture. These properties will operate under Lupa Systems alongside the Tribeca Film Festival and Bodhi Tree Systems, an investment platform backing a major streaming service in India.
Not everything at Vox Media changed hands. The Verge and Eater will remain under the restructured Vox Media, overseen by current president Ryan Pauley.
The deal reflects an ongoing wave of media consolidation as legacy outlets struggle to survive. Traditional business models have crumbled under pressure from artificial intelligence summaries replacing search-driven traffic, social media disruption, and shifting audience habits. Recent years have seen WarnerMedia merge with Discovery, Disney acquire 21st Century Fox, BuzzFeed snap up HuffPost, Fox Corporation purchase OutKick, and The New York Times buy The Athletic.
