Josh Kushner and supermodel wife Karlie Kloss buy Life magazine, plan to revive print edition
Josh Kushner and his supermodel wife Karlie Kloss have agreed to buy Life magazine from Barry Diller’s IAC for an undisclosed sum, according to a report.
Kushner, the venture capitalist who owns Thrive Capitaꦺl, and his wife have come to terms with IAC subsidiary Dotdash Meredith for the publishing rights to Life, the photography-focus🏅ed magazine that ceased putting out monthly editions in 2000.
Kloss’ media startup, Bedford Media, is acquiring the publication rights to Life,
Life, founded by Time publisher Henry Luce, began as a weekly picture magazine that ran from 1883 until 1972. Since then, it has intermittently put out special editions, though it went fully online in 2008.
The magazine’s photojournalists took iconic images from key 20th century events including World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam conflict.
According to the Times, Kushner, the brother of forme✃r Trump administration adviser Jared Kushner, approached Diller about resurrecting Life last year.
Kushner, who has a net worth of more than $3 billion thanks to his venture capital firm’s investments in Instagram, Spotify, and Slack, pitched Diller on reviving the brand both in print and online while using its name to promote events and collaborations with studios, the Times reported.
“Life’s legacy lies in its ability to blend culture, current events and everyday life — highlighting the triumphs, challenges and unique perspectives that define us,” Kushner, who will serve as the magazine’s publisher, said in a statement.
While Bജedford Media will publish the magazine, Dotdash Meredith will still maintain the r🍰ights to the photo and content archive.
Dotdash will also continue tღo publish special single-top💃ic print editions.
“We see Life 🐻as an uplifting and unifying voice in a chaotic media landscape,” Kloss told the Times.
This is the couple’s latest foray into media acquisitions. Last year, Bedford purchased i-D, the style magazine that was once owned by Vice.
In 2020, Kloss put together a group🍸 of investors to pur��chase high-end fashion magazine W.
Bedford will soon start h💮iring editorial staff for💎 Life. The magazine is tentatively scheduled to resume publishing early next year.
The acqui🌱sition comes at a perilous time for the news industry.
The news website The Messenger folded last month after being in 🌟operation since only last May, abruptly putting𝕴 some 300 journalists out of work.
The Los Angeles Times la༒id off more than 100 journalists in recent weeks, Business Insider and Time magazine announced staff cuts, Sports Illustrated is struggling to survive, and the Washington Post is completing buyouℱts to more than 200 staffers.
The Wall Street Journal recen🉐tly laid off roughly 20 people in its Washington bureau.
Pitchfork announced it was no longer a freestanding music site after digital publications BuzzFeed News and Jezebe𓆏l disappeared last year.
With Post Wires
