RedBird takes majority stake in Puck at $250M valuation
What's the deal? RedBird Capital PartnersDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Puck, the five-year-old media startup, at a valuation of roughly $250 million. The investment firm becomes Puck's lead investor, with existing backers Standard InvestmentsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and TPG exiting their positions. RIT Capital will stay on as a minority investor.
Why now? RedBird first joined Puck's cap table last autumn, following Puck's acquisition of Air Mail. The deal, announced September 24, 2026, is expected to close in about a month, pending regulatory approval.
What's the endgame? Puck publishes subscription newsletters covering media, politics, and entertainment. Chief executive officer Sarah Personette and co-founder Jon Kelly told staff the deal gives Puck resources to enter new markets, pursue acquisitions, and expand its intellectual property into new formats. "This is about accelerating our strategy, not changing it," they wrote.
What could go wrong? The tie-up carries clear conflicts. RedBird, led by managing partner Gerry Cardinale, backs several media firms and is a supporter of Paramount SkydanceDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →'s merger bid for Warner Bros. Discovery — a story Puck has routinely covered. Cardinale also sits on ParamountDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →'s board.
Personette and Kelly said the deal "does not change our editorial independence, our differentiated business model, or the things that make Puck, Puck."
The signal: The acquisition adds to RedBird's growing media portfolio, which includes the $674 million purchase of Telegraph Media GroupDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. For Puck, it marks a bet that a talent-driven newsletter model can scale under an owner with deep media, sports, and entertainment holdings — even as those same holdings raise questions about coverage.
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Image credit: Ian Livesey
