Sports Illustrated’s Entire Staff Told They are Getting Laid Off
fliptop writes:
The future of Sports Illustrated looked dire Friday after the publisher of the diminished outlet announced mass layoffs because its license to use the iconic brand's name in print and digital was revoked:
The Arena Group - which had been roiled by reports that the fabled magazine published AI-generated content - admitted to failing to make a $3.75 million quarterly licensing payment to Authentic Brands Group due this week.
As a result, the publicly-traded Arena announced Thursday it would make a "significant reduction" in its workforce of more than 100 journalists.
SI's unionized workers received a memo Friday telling them "some employees will be terminated immediately, and paid in lieu of the 60-day applicable notice period under the [union contract]."
[...] The outlet's website had a smattering of fresh stories Friday, suggesting a skeleton crew was still employed.
Meanwhile, SI's annual Swimsuit edition - which launched the careers of supermodels from Cheryl Tiegs to Tyra Banks - has been completed and will be released in the spring, a source close to the situation told The Post.
Also at NBC News, CNN and HuffPost.
Related: Sports Illustrated Published Articles by Fake, AI-Generated Writers
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