Vibe magazine closing down

Vibe magazine is shutting down after 16 years in business.

A company spokesperson told the press that the operation will close immediately. The magazine was reportedly a victim of declining advertising revenue, but two other hip hop -focused publications, The Source and XXL, remain in business, although The Source went through bankruptcy last year.

Vibe was founded by producer Quincy Jones in 1993 and was purchased by a private equity firm in 2006. Jones is reportedly trying to buy the magazine back and to resume publication online. "Print and all that stuff is over, we gotta remember that," Jones said. He said that print publications are "over the same way as the record business" and said Vibe has "got to get into this century."