Ben Smith, the founding editor-in-chief of Buzzfeed News, is leaving the website eight years after helping to launch its US newsroom.

Smith told staff yesterday he is “eager for a spell of writing and reporting and thinking” as he revealed he will start as a media columnist at the News York Times on 2 March.

He said he is leaving Buzzfeed in a “strong position” under chief executive, Jonah Peretti, who “fundamentally believes in news and has proven again and again that he’ll stand up for the toughest stories, about anyone, and colleagues across the organisation who share that view”.