National Geographic has laid off all 19 of its editorial staff writers in its second such cutback over the last nine months. As reported by Washington Post, the publication’s editorial work will be outsourced to freelance writers and “few editors remaining on staff”, while the magazine’s photo contracts will be curtailed.      

The decision is a part of a series of cost-cutting measures by owner Walt Disney Co. The magazine’s print edition will no longer be sold at newsstands, while its small audio department will also be eliminated.

A magazine spokesperson told CNN it will continue to publish monthly issues.

“Staffing changes will not change our ability to do this work, but rather give us more flexibility to tell different stories and meet our audiences where they are across our many platforms,” the spokesperson said. “Any insinuation that the recent changes will negatively impact the magazine, or the quality of our storytelling, is simply incorrect.”

Several staffers confirmed the layoffs on Twitter. 

The news report said the publication’s downfall has been in the making for years, triggered by the “ascent of digital news”. In September last year, the magazine laid off six of its top editors in an “extraordinary reorganisation of its editorial ranks”. 

Notably, the 135 year-old magazine had just under 1.8 million subscribers at the end of 2022, Washington Post said, citing Alliance for Audited Media, as against 12 million subscribers in the US alone in the late 1980s.