Atlanta, Nov 16 (THAINDIAN NEWS) The gay newspaper Southern Voice along with Washington Blade has closed down. The employees arrived to work after the weekend and found that the doors were closed and a sign posted that said that the magazine was no longer in business.

A notice posted at the Southern Voice office in Atlanta said: “It is with great regret that we must inform you that effective immediately, the operations of Window Media LLC and Unite Media LLC have closed down.”

Window Media LLC is based in Washington, D.C., and is the country’s largest gay and lesbian newspaper publisher. The offbeat company also owns the Washington Blade, Genre Magazine, South Florida Blade and a handful of other gay publications.

The legendary publication of The Washington Blade, had been delighting its readers for 40 years, has also reportedly ceased operation, along with the Houston Voice and various other Window Media properties.

Some of the websites have also been taken offline and a handful of those that are online haven’t got any new information either.

The employees were stunned at the announcement. Some of them knew that the company was in trouble but they certainly hadn’t anticipated this and they weren’t notified in advance too. “We had been told that essentially we’d be sold down the road,” Douglas-Brown said. “We had no inclination it’d be this morning. Everyone’s in shock right now.”

Posting on the Southern Voice Facebook page Monday, editor Douglas-Brown said: “While the 20 years of SoVo have come to an end, our civil rights movement is only beginning. I am personally grateful to all of the staff, and to all of you have had the courage to share your stories. It has been the honor of my life to help you tell them.”