Byron Allen to buy majority stake in BuzzFeed in $120 million deal and become CEO

Byron Allen, founder, chair and CEO of Allen Media Group, discusses his plans to turn Buzzfeed into a free-TV super app. Speaking with Romaine Bostick on "Bloomberg The Close," Allen also comments on taking over Stephen Colbert's "Late Show" time slot. (Source: Bloomberg)

Today, I’m talking with Jonah Peretti, who is, technically, the CEO of BuzzFeed — although that will be coming to an end very soon. Just days before we spoke, Jonah agreed to sell 52 percent of BuzzFeed for a total of $120 million to Byron Allen, who owns The Weather Channel, a number of broadcast […]

After BuzzFeed announced on Monday that Byron Allen is acquiring a majority stake for $120M, former employees are taking the news hard, at the once high-flying media darling.

Byron Allen’s $120 million BuzzFeed deals marks another turning point in the collapse of the platform-era media business model.

Twelve years ago BuzzFeed Inc reportedly valued itself at almost $1 billion, scaring off rumored interest from the Walt Disney Company. Fast-forward to this week and BuzzFeed is selling a controlling stake to Allen Family Digital for $120 million—$100 million of which isn’t due for five years. Allen Family Digital, associated with Byron Allen, will control about 52% of BuzzFeed’s outstanding shares at $3 each.  BuzzFeed’s shares were up more than 101% to over $1.49 on Tuesday morning. The stock has been trading at under a dollar a share for most of this year.  What the deal means for BuzzFeed As part of the deal, BuzzFeed CEO and founder Jonah Peretti will transition into a new role, president of BuzzFeed AI. Notably, BuzzFeed hasn’t exactly had success with its AI strategy, which included AI-generated quizzes and articles, as Futurism reported.  Meanwhile, the title of CEO will transfer to Allen—a comedian and the CEO, founder, and chairman of Allen Media Group.  “Byron’s vision, operational experience, and long-term commitment to premium content makes him exceptionally well-positioned to lead BuzzFeed and HuffPost into our next phase of growth,” Peretti said in the announcement.  “To prepare for his arrival, we are planning to make significant changes, including cost reductions and setting up BuzzFeed Studios . . . and Tasty as a new independent entity,” Peretti continued. Peretti also noted how Allen’s long-running show, Comics Unleashed, is taking over Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show slot on CBS. Allen originally found success as a comedian and pays CBS for the airtime, according to the Los Angeles Times. Peretti is “highly confident that his relationships with talent will bring some incredible stars to the BuzzFeed platform.”  How is BuzzFeed doing as a company?  BuzzFeed has taken quite a tumble from its mid-2010s heyday when it claimed a nearly $1 billion value, according toThe New York Times. The landscape for social media, where BuzzFeed generated much of its traffic, has changed dramatically in the decade since. Platforms such as Facebook and Twitter (now X) stopped prioritizing links and instead now focus on keeping users on their own platforms.  The announced sale came alongside BuzzFeed’s sluggish quarter-one earnings report. The first quarter for 2026 saw BuzzFeed earn $31.6 million in revenue—a 12.4% decline year-over-year (YOY). The company’s advertising revenue decreased 19.8% YOY, and its net loss worsened by 22% YOY, rising from $12.5 million to $15.1 million.  In a post-earnings call, BuzzFeed CFO Matt Omer said the company would withhold full-year guidance for the time being due to the sale.

BuzzFeed, which went public five years ago, has been grappling with a cash crunch.