ESPN: The Magazine will shutter after 21-year run

Who said print was dying? ESPN, apparently.
The sports and entertainment company reportedly told its staff on Tuesday that it will shutter its print edition, ESPN: The Magazine, in September after a 21-year run. The good news is that there seemingly won't be any major job losses as a result, though a "handful" layoffs are expected, Sports Illustrated reports. Still, it's unclear how ESPN will maintain its longform content, though there's some speculation that it will wind up behind the company's newer, digitally-based ESPN+ paywall.
As recently as last September, ESPN senior vice president of original content, Rob King, told SI that the magazine was coming off its most successful year, creatively. But that apparently didn't translate money-wise. ESPN said in a statement regarding the end of production that the company's data shows the "vast majority" of readers already consume the magazine's journalism in digital form.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Even if it is fiscally responsible, the announcement has sparked a wave of nostalgia in the sports journalism world, with many folks taking to Twitter to pay tribute to the magazine's well-respected journalism which netted three National Magazine awards for general excellence.
The bylines of several of the most prominent voices in contemporary sports journalism passed through the pages of magazine, including Bill Simmons, Mina Kimes, and Wright Thompson.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Book reviews: 'America, América: A New History of the New World' and 'Sister, Sinner: The Miraculous Life and Mysterious Disappearance of Aimee Semple McPherson'
Feature A historian tells a new story of the Americas and the forgotten story of a pioneering preacher
-
Another messaging app used by the White House is in hot water
The Explainer TeleMessage was seen being used by former National Security Adviser Mike Waltz
-
AI hallucinations are getting worse
In the Spotlight And no one knows why it is happening
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirement
speed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff display
Speed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loom
Speed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panels
Speed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of business
Speed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pauses
Speed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect
-
Chinese AI chatbot's rise slams US tech stocks
Speed Read The sudden popularity of a new AI chatbot from Chinese startup DeepSeek has sent U.S. tech stocks tumbling
-
US port strike averted with tentative labor deal
Speed Read The strike could have shut down major ports from Texas to Maine