Pros
Forge strong trauma bonds with some of your teammates. Write for both print and digital (a nice coverup for 'overworked'). Decent events and office space, but nothing to shout about that you can't enjoy anywhere else. You can survive (if you drown out literally every noise, grow really thick skin and ignorance, and put your head down and work without asking questions).
Cons
Work here if you want to feel like a disposable and replaceable cog in a dystopian machine. There are extremely toxic coworkers who throw you under the bus and gaslight you like it's part of their job description. Praise or encouragement for good and honest work is hardly ever given unless it directly correlates to monetary gain for the company. Editorial integrity goes down the drain daily with no progressive creative direction or value placed in pure editorial initiatives. The pay is a joke compared to what the company portrays itself to be and the revenue it claims to make. This is a lifestyle magazine where its writers and production team actually have no life ironically. In the office and at company-hosted events, you are surrounded by social climbers and name droppers, who value your net worth and stature more than your personality – money is king even at the expense of employees wellbeing. No proper onboarding process or scheduled exit interviews, so don't expect any proper HR procedures either. In fact, there is no proper HR. Instead, you are bossed around, called out, and degraded by the someone who is clearly not HR-focused. Though much of media calls for a high workload, this company excels in dumping and mindlessly delegating an inhumane amount of work and responsibilities and BLAME, with no reward or accountability. There is a clear lack of growth opportunities within the company, with increments and bonuses so low they're a joke. Dictatorial tendencies from higher ups and no support or protection from managers/editors against higher management, so prepare to be on edge and to fend for yourself at every turn. The big boss' word rules the office. You have to ask for EVERYTHING. Also, prepare to be shamed, wrongfully blamed, gaslit, and called out in the group chats. Calling people out - that's the real culture here. Seniors are extremely petty, making the whole office feel like some terrible high school movie. Unsupportive coworkers outside of your "safe circle". Overall, this place fosters two-faced behaviors, empty promises, an unsafe environment for employees to voice concerns, and an overwhelmingly negative mindset that will eventually consume you. The epitome of "a pizza party will solve everything". Constant feelings of embarrassment for representing a company with a big name but NO substance and reliability. Management fails to see that the writers and production teams are actually the ones putting out the work that they are selling to clients and publishing for readers, hence, a terrible lack of respect for the editorial team, writers specifically, in-house creatives, art teams, and hired creatives.