Byron Allen Acquires Majority Stake in BuzzFeed, Takes CEO Role

Byron Allen is expanding his media empire significantly, acquiring a controlling interest in BuzzFeed while preparing to launch a major presence in late-night television.

The media and television entrepreneur is investing $120 million to take over a majority stake in BuzzFeed through Allen Family Digital, an arm of his family office. As part of the deal announced Monday, May 11, Allen will serve as the company's CEO.

Allen plans to steer BuzzFeed and HuffPost toward new content horizons, focusing on free-streaming video, audio, and user-generated content platforms.

Current BuzzFeed CEO and co-founder Jonah Peretti will move into a newly created position: president of BuzzFeed AI.

The acquisition comes as Allen prepares for an ambitious move into late-night broadcasting. When Late Night with Stephen Colbert concludes on May 21, Allen's comedy program Comics Unleashed will claim the time slot. He's also secured the 12:37 a.m. hour for his game show Funny You Should Ask.

Allen built his media footprint as chairman and CEO of Allen Media Group, overseeing 13 broadcast television stations affiliated with ABC, CBS, and NBC. His background includes work as a stand-up comedian and television host.

On the late-night front, Jimmy Kimmel has announced his show will air a rerun during the final broadcast of Colbert's program, reducing competition on that particular evening.