Exclusive: The Bulwark joins Vox Media's podcast network

• A more sophisticated advertising strategy will help ensure much of its content remains free. "You can't save democracy from behind a paywall," she said.

How it works: Vox Media will become the exclusive advertising seller for The Bulwark's inventory across podcasts, video, newsletters and live events, chair and CEO Jim Bankoff said.

• It will host The Bulwark's podcasts, including its flagship daily show hosted by Tim Miller, on its ad platform and support the company's business growth with additional tools, such as analytics, cross-promotion and marketing across its network. The Bulwark will continue doing its own production.
• Longwell hopes Vox Media will help the company pursue more premium advertisers and partnerships that align with the company's values, in addition to developing cross-platform sponsorship packages.

• The companies also plan to expand live event sponsorship opportunities for The Bulwark next year, building on Vox Media's experience with podcast tours.
• Vox Media will get a cut of advertising revenue, Bankoff confirmed. The companies declined to disclose financial terms.

Zoom out: Launched in 2019, The Bulwark has evolved from a scrappy startup to a multimillion-dollar business with a sprawling portfolio.

• The company has seen explosive audience growth over the past two years, especially since the midterms, Longwell said, but building its own advertising sales operation "was more than we wanted to take on."
• "We're a big media company now, and I think we're the future," she said. "I don't think the Trump question has any bearing anymore on that," she added.
• Longwell said she has no current plans to sell the company.

By the numbers: The Bulwark is on track to exceed $30 million in revenue this year, with about an even split across advertising and subscriptions, Longwell said.

• It now has roughly 167,000 paid subscriptions across Substack (147,000), YouTube (~15,000) and Apple (~5,000), in addition to over 1 million free Substack newsletter subscribers and nearly 2 million free YouTube subscribers.

Flashback: Vox Media sold its podcast network and several of its publishing assets, including New York Magazine, to James Murdoch's investment firm Lupa Systems in July.

• The Bulwark is also backed by Murdoch through his and his wife Kathryn's family foundation Quadrivium.
• Longwell said The Bulwark's investors are a "super small part of our portfolio," adding, "We are not an investor-owned company."

The big picture: The partnership reflects a broader shift in the media industry as personality-driven media startups look to tap into the business infrastructure of established brands.

• For the Lupa-owned Vox Media, the deal represents an expansion of its podcast network business from serving mainly creators and well-known individuals, such as Kara Swisher, Hillary Clinton, Esther Perel and Sue Bird, to becoming a growth partner for independent media companies.
• "The Bulwark represents a big leap forward in that because of their size and quality," Bankoff told Axios.
• Vox's pitch to advertisers is that it can offer access to audiences across a mix of content from brands, creators and outlets they either own or partner with.

Context: While the model gives Vox Media an opportunity to expand its ad inventory without having to own and operate every brand in its network, the company will remain selective about which businesses it works with, he said.

• "We've always been a curated network," he said. "We want to find partners that have a quality threshold that really matters to marketers."
• The Bulwark deal is focused on advertising and marketing, but Bankoff noted Vox Media can provide additional services to partners, including production, promotion, distribution and even back-office support.

What's next: The Bulwark deal will give Vox Media's advertising partners access to a combined network of nearly 200 hours of original current affairs programming per month, beginning in 2027.