An interesting situation has developed across the pond.

Several staff members at Kotaku’s US-based offices have reportedly been fired been reprimanded today after a post complaining of new “atrocious ads” that were appearing on the website was published yesterday.

The post — which also featured on G/O Media sites including Gizmodo, Deadspin, Jezebel — highlighted “atrocious ads” that were appearing as a result of a “new private equity owner management team”. The posts were quickly removed, presumably by that same new faction.

As a consequence of the post, Kotaku’s Jason Schreier, Stephen Totilo, Gita Jackson and Heather Alexandra appear to have been reprimanded with some form of undisclosed punitive measure. At the same time, Deadspin Deputy Editor, Barry Petchesky, has confirmed he was fired “for not sticking to sports.”

If the atrocious ads on our website are bothering you, here is how to contact Kotaku's new private equity owner management team :) https://t.co/OXfBpoHwOt — Jason Schreier (@jasonschreier) October 28, 2019

We’re re-posting the statement as a screenshot here as we gather more information. We thank you, our readers and supporters, for standing with us through this process. (2/3) pic.twitter.com/cRvMKeu2aF — GMG Union (@gmgunion) October 29, 2019

I don't know what's going to happen next, but to everyone who has read and supported our work at Kotaku over the years, thank you ❤️ — Jason Schreier (@jasonschreier) October 29, 2019

messages of solidarity are heartening. thank you. there is a lot of work yet to be done. ✊🏾 — Gita Jackson, Mrs. Dr. Caspar Darling (@xoxogossipgita) October 29, 2019

So, uh…. I still really want to tell you all about Death Stranding later this week but uh…. — Heather Alexandra (@transgamerthink) October 29, 2019

Hi! I’ve just been fired from Deadspin for not sticking to sports. — Barry Petchesky (@barry) October 29, 2019

Earlier today, @JimSpanfeller, CEO of G/O Media, fired our colleague and longtime Deadspin Deputy Editor Barry Petchesky. This will not stand. We will have updates soon. — GMG Union (@gmgunion) October 29, 2019

Users of the NeoGAF forum have taken the tweets to mean the individuals were fired, with most celebrating the news and proclaiming that “Kotaku is dead”.

Update: New tweets suggest that Kotaku’s staff have been reprimanded in some manner but have not lost their positions. We’ve reflected this throughout this post accordingly.

Another tough day at the office. I've steered @Kotaku through some rough waters before thanks to my amazing team. Can I do it again? We'll see! We all love the site–and the family of sites we're in–and are extremely motivated to do right by our readers and viewers. — Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) October 29, 2019

Lotta trolls are acting like Kotaku's gone but we're not. As we fight for our comrades and see what the future holds, we're still gonna do our best to provide the coverage readers expect. — Heather Alexandra (@transgamerthink) October 29, 2019

Like, I get it. I've been on the internet long enough. Some of you hate me and my work, but you don't really know me as a person and this isn't the first time folks' been like "byyyeee bitch" only for me to still be around when next sun comes up. — Heather Alexandra (@transgamerthink) October 29, 2019

Whatever happens, happens. We stick by comrades, do the goddamn work, and sail the pirate ship as long as we got winds. *bobby deNiro voice* that's the discipline. — Heather Alexandra (@transgamerthink) October 29, 2019

As you might imagine my written impressions got somewhat delayed today (you can read them tomorrow on Kotaku) so I'm gonna run FFXIV's new Nier Automata raid from healer and DPS perspective right now on Twitch! https://t.co/OKhlOq76RE pic.twitter.com/Td5EsWxCdD — Heather Alexandra (@transgamerthink) October 29, 2019

Thanks to the chill folks who joined in. You can read full impressions tomorrow on Kotaku dot Com, a website that I seem to need to explain yes, still exists. — Heather Alexandra (@transgamerthink) October 29, 2019

Locally, Kotaku Australia is not owned by G/O Media but by Pedestrian Group. It is not impacted by today’s events.

We’ll have more on the situation as it develops.