Former New York Daily News top editor relaunched Deadspin last year

G/O Media’s editorial director Jim Rich has abruptly left the company, home to Deadspin, Jezebel and Gizmodo, in a clash with private equity ownership, TheWrap has learned.

Rich, who has been in the job for 18 months, told TheWrap that he resigned this afternoon from G/O Media and that it was due to clashes with upper management: “I can confirm specifically that I resigned this afternoon from G/O Media and that it was solely because of clashes with upper management,” he wrote in an email to TheWrap.

A G/O Media spokesperson told TheWrap: “G/O Media has parted company with Jim Rich — he provided stability during a very important time for the company and we appreciate all of his efforts. We thank him for his many contributions, and wish him only the best in his future endeavors,” a G/O Media spokesperson told TheWrap.

The spokesperson declined to give a reason for Rich’s exit.

Rich, who oversaw the company’s portfolio of digital outlets like Deadspin, Jezebel and Gizmodo, told The Daily Beast that his departure was not related to recent blowback from a Deadspin story he co-authored last year about ESPN host Rachel Nichols.

The former editor at HuffPost and New York Daily News editor-in-chief joined in January 2020 as the top editor of the sports news site Deadspin after the abrupt resignation of its editorial staff the year before. Three months later, he was promoted to editorial director of all G/O Media’s sites.

Rich had been trying to relaunch Deadspin. In 2019, Deadspin staff quit after the company executives instructed them to limit coverage to sports, rather than stories about pop culture or criticizing G/O Media’s policies.

G/O Media formed after private equity firm Great Hill Partners bought Gizmodo Media Group and The Onion back in 2019.

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