Byron Allen Is Buying BuzzFeed, Will Become CEO

TV and media entrepreneur Byron Allen is taking a majority stake in BuzzFeed — investing $120 million in the digital media company — and will become CEO.

BuzzFeed announced it has entered into a transaction agreement with Allen Family Digital, an affiliate of Byron Allen’s family office, under which BuzzFeed will accept a majority investment.

BuzzFeed founder and CEO Jonah Peretti will be succeeded by Byron Allen, who will assume the role of chairman and Chief Executive Officer upon closing, and Peretti will transition to a newly created role as president of BuzzFeed AI.

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Under the terms of the agreement, Allen Family Digital will acquire 40 million shares of BuzzFeed, Inc. at a price of $3.00 per share for a total purchase price of $120 million. Upon closing, Allen Family Digital will own approximately 52% of the Company’s outstanding shares. The purchase price will be funded with $20 million in cash at closing and a $100 million promissory note due five years from closing, accruing interest at 5% annually.

The transaction is currently expected to close by the end of May 2026, subject to customary closing conditions.

Byron Allen is the Founder, Chairman and CEO of Allen Media Group which he founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Los Angeles. Allen owns 13 ABC-CBS-NBC network affiliate broadcast television stations in 11 U.S. markets and ten 24-hour HD television networks serving nearly 275 million subscribers: THE WEATHER CHANNEL, PETS.TV, COMEDY.TV, RECIPE.TV, CARS.TV, ES.TV, MYDESTINATION.TV, JUSTICECENTRAL.TV, THEGRIO TELEVISION NETWORK, and HBCU GO. Allen also owns the digital streaming platforms HBCU GO, SPORTS.TV, LOCAL NOW and THE WEATHER CHANNEL STREAMING APP. Allen owns a two-hour nightly comedy block on CBS Network and also produces, distributes, and sells advertising for 74 television programs, making him one of the largest independent producers/distributors of first-run syndicated television programming for broadcast television stations, cable networks, and digital platforms.