Dunham’s ‘Lenny’ newsletter no more
Lena Dunham’s feminist-leaning site, the Lenny Letter, is shutting down.
Started by the co-creator of HBO’s “Girls,” the Web site, which blasted twice-a-week emails with articles on women’s topics, will cease operations on Friday, The Post has learned.
A rep for Dunham did not respond to requests for comment.
Rumblings of Lenny’s closure began to trickle out earlier this week when freelance writers were notified by editors that they would receive kill fees — compensation for articles that haven’t been published.
The newsletter had always struggled for ad support, according to industry sources, and a series of controversies haven’t helped. Last November, Dunham caught flak when she defended former “Girls” writer Murray Miller after an actress ac- cused him of sexually assaulting her in 2012.
The Lenny Letter’s readership has plunged precipitously since July 2017, a source said, when it reportedly had 500,000 subscribers, with nearly half of them opening its e-mails.
Launched in 2015, the Lenny Letter was the brainchild of Dunham and Jenni Konner, her co-creator for the “Girls” series. In its early days, it generated buzz with articles penned by stars like Jennifer Lawrence, who wrote about the gender wage gap in Hollywood, and Alicia Keys, who talked about her decision to start wearing little to no make up.
Months after its launch, Dunhamand-Konner inked a deal with Hearst Digital Media to handle advertising sales. At the time, sources at Hearst had expressed frustration about its inability to drum up meaningful revenue.
Late last year, rival magazine publisher Condé Nast poached Lenny from Hearst to sell ads and distribute content across its Web sites. That deal was said to take effect in 2018.
Condé Nast declined to comment.