![]() ![]() Daulerio, also named in the Hogan case, and Sam Biddle, who now works for The Intercept but faces other legal challenges (believed to be backed by Thiel).įinally, people gave thanks to Denton. ![]() The bulk of the speeches, however, were to thank Gawker's various employees, especially its writers. Ailes had been a routine Gawker target, and recent allegations have claimed that he sought to take revenge on some of Gawker's employees with attacks including a plan to smear Cook as an antisemite.ĭenton, who grew bolder as his speech went on, even touched on Facebook's dominance in the media world, a topic that he has wavered on in the past but is perhaps emboldened to push thanks to Thiel, who sits on Facebook's board of directors. So was Roger Ailes, the former Fox CEO honcho who resigned amid a sexual harassment scandal with a payday reported to be around $40 million. Thiel, who a Gawker Media site years ago revealed to be gay, was alluded to and then directly name dropped a few times. Credit: Gawkerĭenton, Cook and Heather Dietrick, Gawker's president and general counsel, spoke in successive speeches totaling less than 30 minutes, touching on Gawker's situation but also the broader sense that Gawker's combative style of journalism has come under fire. Gawker's invitation for Wednesday's party. "In a week we're going to know the identity of the company's new owners, and I am hopeful and confident that the parent company that the sites will be under will allow them to thrive, will allow the people to thrive, will allow the brands to thrive without the distraction of the lawsuits that we've been facing over the last year," Denton told the crowd that packed into the office's central staircase that also served as a mini indoor amphitheatre. The company's future is out of the hands of its leadership, which can now only prepare for the worst and hope for something better. ![]() The crowd included a heavy mix of current and former Gawker employees, as well as a litany of New York's inside-baseball media all-stars. A movie silently played on the projector screen in the office's central meeting space. The soiree stretched its budget to the max (Gawker lawyers told the bankruptcy judge on its case that it would cost under $1,000) with a combination of pizza and beer. Walking up the stairs to Gawker's office revealed a party set in the company's past but dealing with its current liabilities and future uncertainty. Whether Wednesday night's party ends up being a wake won't be known until next week, when the company's bankruptcy-spurred bidding process comes to a conclusion with Gawker Media under new ownership. Gawker is nearing an end to a dramatic few months that included a stunning $140 million judgement in a suit brought by Hulk Hogan, the revelation that Hogan's case and many others against Gawker and its employees have been backed by venture billionaire Peter Thiel and culminating in the company being forced to declare bankruptcy. "I don't know if I'm at a wake or." Cook said, trailing off to leave the ending open to interpretation by the Gawker employees, familiar reporters and New York media set that had gathered at the company's office for a relatively impromptu party billed as "a celebration of 14 years of independent journalism."Ī joke, sure, but Cook couldn't have summed up the scene better. Nick Denton, Gawker CEO and co-founder, had just finished giving a gratitude-filled speech when he handed the microphone to executive editor John Cook. ![]()
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