LUPA SYSTEMS ACQUIRES THREE MAJOR DIVISIONS OF VOX MEDIA: NEW YORK MAGAZINE, VOX MEDIA PODCAST NETWORK, AND VOX
NEW YORK, May 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Lupa Systems, James Murdoch's media and technology holding company, has agreed to acquire New York Magazine, the Vox Media Podcast Network, and Vox from the digital media group Vox Media. The properties, known for editorial excellence and deeply engaged audiences, will operate as a subsidiary of Lupa Systems called Vox Media. Eater, Popsugar, SB Nation, The Dodo, and The Verge are not included in the transaction.
These divisions' roster of influential journalists, top-rated podcasts, and digital brands with large social footprints, together with the group's iconic biweekly print magazine, will give Lupa exceptional new reach across platforms and fit neatly into Lupa's growing global portfolio.
"This acquisition aligns well with our existing holdings and investments and reflects both our interest in the forward edge of culture and our deep commitment to ambitious journalism and agenda-setting conversations," said James Murdoch. "It will allow us to apply new tools across the businesses we are building, adding substantial production, distribution, and editorial capability to our group."
Lupa's acquisition of New York Magazine includes its must-read verticals, The Cut, Vulture, Intelligencer, The Strategist, Curbed, and Grub Street. Vox brings multiplatform leadership in video, text, and podcasts like Today, Explained. The Vox Media Podcast Network, home to popular shows such as Pivot with Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway, Criminal, and Where Should We Begin? with Esther Perel, has been the fastest growing business within Vox Media and will immediately put Lupa at the top of the podcast field, which now reaches 58% of Americans monthly, according to Edison Research, including two out of three people between the ages of 18 and 54.
The new Vox Media will be led by Jim Bankoff, who co-founded Vox Media and has led its growth since its early days as a network of a dozen grassroots sports blogs. He will be CEO of the new company upon closing. "I couldn't be more thrilled to partner with James and Lupa Systems. Each one of these Vox Media divisions is marked by its strong relevance with audiences, its commitment to quality, and its enormous growth potential. We are incredibly proud to have built and scaled several of the leading media properties of this generation. Together under Lupa's stewardship we are primed to be the best home for talent and the most dynamic media company of this new era," said Jim Bankoff.
Lupa's acquisition of the Vox Media properties brings together two groups that place a premium on being at the center of the cultural conversation. Lupa's holdings include MCH Group's Art Basel, which sets the global art agenda at its annual events in Paris, Basel, Miami, Hong Kong, and Doha and Tribeca Enterprises, the media and entertainment company co-founded by Robert DeNiro and Jane Rosenthal. Through Bodhi Tree Systems, Lupa also holds a material stake in India's leading streaming entertainment and sports platform, JioStar with viewership of over 750M.
James Murdoch has deep experience in media, having served as CEO of 21st Century Fox, as well as Europe's BSkyB and Sky plc. Before that, he was CEO of Asia's Star TV, which he built out into one of the region's top news, sports and entertainment franchises. Since founding Lupa, James Murdoch has partnered with Uday Shankar to create Bodhi Tree Systems, which houses media and consumer businesses in South Asia, with a particular focus on India's robust market. He and his wife, Kathryn have invested more than $50M through their foundation Quadrivium in support of better journalism, including founding SciLine, a service that connects journalists to scientific expertise, and the American Journalism Project, which supports local journalism with better business models. They were also founding investors in The Bulwark.
Since its founding, Vox Media has grown both organically–launching new media brands including Vox–and through targeted acquisitions. Vox Media was early to podcasting, and nimble and forward-thinking in building a podcast network that positioned the company at the vanguard of a fast-changing media landscape. Vox, under the leadership of editor-in-chief Swati Sharma, has grown a membership program with tens of thousands of paying subscribers, a thriving YouTube channel with nearly 13 million subscribers, and podcasts including Unexplainable, The Gray Area, and America, Actually.
In 2019, Vox Media acquired New York Magazine, reinforcing and diversifying its subscription and ecommerce revenue streams in addition to its traditional base of advertising, while continuing to publish stories that drive the national conversation. Under the leadership of editor-in-chief David Haskell and Vox Media president & vice chair Pam Wasserstein New York has thrived, challenging and fascinating a growing readership, building a diverse and growing business, and winning multiple accolades for the excellence of its prodigious editorial output.
The Vox Media Podcast Network, under the leadership of Ray Chao, general manager, and Nishat Kurwa, executive producer, has grown into a portfolio of nearly 50 leading shows and reaches an audience of tens of millions across audio, video, and social platforms. The podcast network has also amassed a growing presence in live events, with nearly 50 live shows from across its portfolio in 2025 and more expected in 2026.
LionTree acted as financial advisor to Vox Media in connection with the transaction.
ABOUT LUPA SYSTEMS
Lupa Systems, founded by James Murdoch in March 2019, is a private holding company with locations in New York and Mumbai.
Media Contact Juleanna Glover: [email protected]
ABOUT NEW YORK MAGAZINE
Since its founding in 1968, New York Magazine has obsessively chronicled the ideas, people, and cultural events that shape our world. The beloved and influential New York brands include the groundbreaking biweekly print magazine New York and six thriving verticals: Intelligencer, delivering national news and sharp commentary on politics, business, technology, and the media; The Cut, covering style, self, culture, and power; Vulture, the premier site for culture news, criticism, and service; The Strategist, dedicated to shopping the internet smartly; Curbed, covering cities and city life; and Grub Street, home to food news and authoritative restaurant criticism. Under Vox Media President Pam Wasserstein and Editor-in-Chief David Haskell, the magazine has won eight National Magazine Awards, including the 2026 award for general excellence, a Pulitzer Prize for criticism, and a George Polk Award, among other honors. It has a digital audience of tens of millions, with a fast-growing consumer revenue business that currently boasts more than 400,000 paying subscribers (20% of whom regularly use its app), as well as a million email subscribers and 12 million followers on social media.
ABOUT VOX MEDIA PODCAST NETWORK
The Vox Media Podcast Network is one of the largest U.S. podcast publishers, home to some of the audio space's most popular and influential shows. Reaching a monthly audience of tens of millions across audio, video, and social platforms, its podcasts spark conversations, frame issues and define the popular zeitgeist in everything from politics, technology, and business to sports, entertainment, and more. Learn more about the network at podcasts.voxmedia.com.
ABOUT VOX: Among Vox's many properties, the vertical that bears its name, Vox, was launched in 2014 to address the disconnect between the widely reported facts of the day and a true understanding of why something happened. It developed a much-imitated explainer format that delivers understanding on digital platforms, newsletters, a thriving YouTube channel boasting nearly 13 million subscribers, and a stable of podcasts including Today, Explained, The Gray Area, and the newly launched America, Actually. Under the leadership of editor-in-chief Swati Sharma it has grown a membership program with tens of thousands of paying subscribers.
Media Contact Lauren Starke: [email protected]
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