Anna Wintour Kept Sunglasses On While Laying Off Entire Pitchfork Staff
Jan. 19 2024, Published 5:25 p.m. ET
Condé Nast's Anna Wintour kept her sunglasses on while informing Pitchfork staff they were being laid off, RadarOnline.com has learned.
Wintour, who oversees Condé Nast publications worldwide, apparently refused to ditch her iconic accessories while she was notifying the employees that they were losing their jobs as a result of the music news publication merging with men's magazine GQ.
A former Pitchfork staff writer, Allison Hussey, revealed Wintour's strange behavior during the staff meeting in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
"One absolutely bizarro detail from this week is that Anna Wintour — seated indoors at a conference table — did not remove her sunglasses while she was telling us that we were about to get canned," Hussey wrote on Friday. "The indecency we’ve seen from upper management this week is appalling."
Hussey's post drew a mix of replies in its comment section. While some came to Wintour's defense, arguing that it was a simply a fashion choice, others branded the move tactless and offensive given the nature of the meeting.
"@voguemagazine she kept her sun glasses on so they couldn't see her rolling her eyes while she was spreading her vile um I mean news," wrote one user, who notably tagged Vogue, where Wintour has served as editor-in-chief since 1988.
Hussey's post follows Condé Nast's announcement on Wednesday, in which the media company revealed their decision to fold Pitchfork into GQ — and subsequently gave notice of impending layoffs in the process. Media reporter Max Tani shared Wintour's staff memo announcing the news on X.
"Today we are evolving our Pitchfork team structure by bringing the team into the GQ organization," Wintour wrote. "This decision was made after a careful evaluation of Pitchfork’s performance and what we believe is the best path forward for the brand so that our coverage of music can continue to thrive within the company."
"Both Pitchfork and GQ have unique and valuable ways that they approach music journalism, and we are excited for the new possibilities together," Wintour's memo continued. "With these organizational changes, some of our Pitchfork colleagues will be leaving the company today."
Wintour went on to thank Pitchfork's editor-in-chief Puja Patel "for her leadership of the title over the last five years."
"She has been a wonderful colleague and advocate for the brand, and I’m grateful for her and the team’s many contributions," Wintour said of Patel.
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Pitchfork was acquired by Condé Nast in 2015. The popular music news and criticism outlet was originally launched as an independent music blog in 1996 by writer and record shop employee Ryan Schreiber.
Since its inception, Pitchfork has been held in high regard by music aficionados for its coverage of alternative and independent artists, while often offering harsh criticism of mainstream work.