The 404 Media Podcast Why Journalists Are Leaving Big Media (with Maddy Myers)
16 snips
Apr 20, 2026 
Maddy Myers, games journalist and co-founder/editor-in-chief of Mothership, known for feminist games criticism and leadership at Kotaku and Polygon. She recounts leaving big outlets to start an indie, early print-journalism roots, building a queer, women-owned site, decisions around ownership and pay models, and the challenges of sustainable growth and fair freelance budgets.
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Quitting Polygon To Build Something They Own
- Maddy and Zoe quit Polygon together with no severance and launched Mothership to regain control over their careers.
- They deliberately chose ownership after watching colleagues laid off and 34 people at their previous workplace lose jobs.
From Print Intern To Games Critic
- Maddy started games journalism via an unpaid internship at the Boston Phoenix, a print alt-weekly, working for free for a year and a half.
- The Phoenix covered games in the arts section and taught her layout and local-paper lessons that few journalists now have.
Camaraderie Shapes Editorial Mission
- The Mary Sue provided a feminist, supportive newsroom that normalized covering harassment and feminist criticism as central beats.
- That sense of camaraderie shaped Maddy's desire to recreate a similar space with Mothership.