JEZEBEL, AN INCISIVE FEMINIST VOICE SINCE THE HEIGHT OF THE BLOGOSPHERE ERA, IS SHUTTING DOWN

Jezebel, the sharp-edged feminist website that found an impassioned and devoted following at the height of the blogosphere era but ended up struggling with its business model, is shutting down after 16 years, its parent company announced.

It is the latest gender-focused media site to fold as the media industry struggles with plummeting digital advertising that has also cut into the profitability of major tech companies from Google to Facebook. Bitch Media, which had a print magazine, website and podcast, closed last year after 25 years, citing sustainability. The Washington Post folded The Lily, its freestanding publication on gender an identity issues, into its main website last year.

G/O Media said 23 staffers would be laid off, including Jezebel's team, as part of a restructuring to cope with economic headwinds and a difficult digital advertising environment. The New York-based company also announced the departure of G/O Media editorial director Merrill Brown.

Launched in 2007 by Gawker Media, Jezebel established itself as an influential voice in feminist commentary years before the explosion of the #Metoo movement pushed issues of gender and power to the forefront of mainstream media coverage. The website combined searing commentary on gender politics with edgy pop culture coverage to build a audience craving an alternative to the frothy fashion magazines that dominated the landscape of media targeted at women.

'THE REAL PRAGMATIC EXPERIENCES OF WOMEN'S LIVES'

The website appealed to readers because it combined style with serious news and commentary, said Kate Cox, program director for Poynter's Leadership Academy for Women in Media. It covered political issues like abortion but gained the most buzz with its takedowns of celebrity culture and the fashion industries, helping make subjects like "body shaming" and "rape culture" part of the national discourse.