Vox Media to Merge with Group Nine Media 

Group Nine Media joins Vox Media's editorial brands, including S.B. Nation, New York magazine, The Verge, Vox, Eater, The Cut, Vulture, Polygon and The Strategist. 

The deal, which is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approval, is expected to close in early 2022; it is outside the Group Nine SPAC (Group Nine Acquisition Corp), a separate entity. 

Jim Bankoff will be the chief executive officer and chair of Vox Media, of which he is also a co-founder. Group Nine Media founder and chief executive officer Ben Lerer will join the board of Vox Media and maintain a presence to help drive critical strategic initiatives and advise on commercial and corporate development. 

"Under Ben's stewardship, Group Nine has navigated from a scrappy start-up to one of the biggest and most successful publishers

"We could not be more excited about the opportunity to join forces with Vox Media," says Lerer. "This combination will not only create unparalleled scale and revenue diversification, but it will also bring together some of the most popular brands, premium content, and creative and business talent in the world. There is no one I would trust more to lead this company and the team I love than Jim. He is not only kind and fair but fearless and focused. This is the beginning of our most exciting chapter."