Hearst Magazines president Troy Young has left the company after reports of harassment and 'toxic' culture

• Hearst Magazines president Troy Young has resigned, Hearst's president and CEO told staff in a company-wide email on Thursday.
• "Troy Young and I have agreed that it is in the best interest of all of us that he resign as president of Hearst Magazines, effective immediately," the email read.
• Young's resignation comes after a report in The New York Times detailed allegations of Young's history of lewd, sexist remarks and abusive behavior while at Hearst.
• As president, Young oversaw Hearst's iconic magazine portfolio, which includes Cosmopolitan, Elle, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Seventeen, Marie Claire, and Harper's Bazaar.

Hearst Magazines president Troy Young has resigned from his position, effective immediately, Business Insider has learned.

In an all-staff email Thursday night, Hearst president and CEO Steven R. Swartz announced that Young was no longer with the company. The announcement comes a day after a bombshell report in The New York Times detailed allegations of "bullying or harassing" behavior by Young, including making "lewd, sexist remarks" to employees and in at least one instance, sending pornography to an editor.

"Troy Young and I have agreed that it is in the best interest of all of us that he resign as president of Hearst Magazines, effective immediately," Swartz wrote in the email, which has since been posted on Hearst's website.

As president, Young oversaw Hearst's iconic magazines like Cosmopolitan, Elle, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Seventeen, Marie Claire, and Harper's Bazaar.

Current and former employees at those magazines told The Times of multiple instances of harassment, vulgar comments, and lewd remarks that Young made toward staffers, making them uncomfortable. In one instance, Young made an explicitly sexual gesture to a Cosmo staffer at a company holiday party. In another, he suggested that he was the father of a pregnant employee's child. At least four employees had complained about their experiences to Hearst's human resources department even before he became president, The New York Times reported.

In his response to The Times' article, Young called the allegations "untrue, greatly exaggerated or taken out of context." He also defended his behavior by arguing that sex was discussed "openly" at Cosmo and "defined the Cosmo brand for decades."

After The Times published its report, Young sent a note to staff that said his comments "lacked an awareness." He also said his comments "do no represent who I am," and alleged the Times article "misrepresented" company culture.

Young first joined Hearst in 2013 as its president of digital media, and took over as head of Hearst Magazines in 2018.