In a memo to staff members, Dotdash Meredith CEO Neil Vogel attributed this decision to a bigger focus on website content. The April editions of each magazine will be the final ones, according to The Wall Street Journal, which broke the news. These closures come two months after the NewsGuild of New York claimed that Dotdash Meredith failed a health and safety audit.

“It is not news to anyone that there has been a pronounced shift in readership and advertising from print to digital, and as a result, for a few important brands, print is no longer serving the brand’s core purpose,” Vogel said in his statement. “As such, we are going to move to a digital-only future for these brands, which will help us to unlock their full potential.”

Over 200 jobs (less than 5 percent of Dotdash Meredith’s total staff) will be lost due to the decision. However, Vogel attempted to quell worker fears in his statement by discussing how appreciated they were throughout the company.

“​​Transitions like this are very difficult, impacting colleagues and friends, some of whom have been with the company for decades,” Vogel said. “I can’t thank these employees enough for getting these brands to the strong place they are at today. Brand leaders have already notified those impacted, and we are taking great care to help ensure a smooth transition for these employees.”

As the memo came to a conclusion, Vogel insisted that this move was neither a cost-saving measure nor a sign that print media is dying. Instead, the move was made in order to appeal to the steady reader base each website has online. The print editions of Meredith’s flagship magazines, such as People, will continue to be printed.

“Today’s step is not a cost savings exercise and it is not about capturing synergies or any other acquisition jargon, it is about embracing the inevitable digital future for the affected brands,” wrote Vogel. “​​We continue to provide incredible value to readers in print, and we will proudly print over 350 million magazines in 2022.”

The closure of these six print magazines comes amid tension with the Meredith Union. In December, the NewsGuild of New York and the Meredith Union said that the company had failed a health and safety audit conducted to determine if they were complying with COVID-19 measures.

“​​Issues of health and safety are the #1 priority for our team of journalists and their families. It should be [Dotdash Meredith]’s too,” the union wrote on Twitter. They’re failing to adhere to the most basic health & safety standards, let alone the gold standard protocols we proposed in bargaining."

The union had another falling out with Meredith (prior to becoming Dotdash Meredith) in November after several employees allegedly worked unpaid to publish five issues of Ayesha Curry’s magazine, Sweet July, and were let go from the company. The employees worked for Shape magazine, which shuttered its print production last year.

“They were laid off without notice, but it seemed the company forgot the team that had been fired was also working on Curry’s magazine on top of Shape,” an unnamed insider told The New York Post at the time.

Newsweek has reached out to Dotdash Meredith and the Meredith Union for comment.

Update 02/09/22, 1:27 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to include more information about the conflict between Dotdash Meredith and the Meredith Union.

Update 02/09/22, 12:42 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to include parts of the internal Dotdash Meredith memo, as well as background information.