Daily Beast Brings in New York Post Vet to Replace Tracy Connor as Top Editor
The Daily Beast announced a shakeup of editorial leadership, appointing a veteran of Fleet Street and the New York Post to replace editor in chief Tracy Connor as head of the newsroom.
Hugh Dougherty, a Glasgow native who served most recently as deputy editor of the Post, was appointed to the “newly expanded” role of executive editor, according to an internal memo written by new Beast CEO Ben Sherwood and chief content officer Joanna Coles.
“In this newly expanded top role in the newsroom, Hugh will lead our editorial team, marking the start of an exciting new chapter in our history of fearless storytelling and insightful commentary,” they wrote, before detailing Dougherty’s career in the U.K. and the U.S., where he worked at the Daily Mail and then the Post.
Connor, herself a veteran journalist with stints at NBC News, the Post and the New York Daily News, will step down as editor of the Beast, a position she’s held since 2021.
Mention of Connor in memo was brief. “We want to recognize Tracy’s leadership over the years and thank her for her dedication and countless contributions,” Sherwood wrote. “We wish her the best.”
“Being the editor in chief of The Daily Beast was the honor of a lifetime- and more fun than anyone has a right to expect at work,” Connor wrote in her own statement on X. “I’m so proud of what this mega-talented team has accomplished and I am excited for the next chapter, for myself and for the Beast.”
Noah Shachtman, Connor’s predecessor at the Beast, had warm words for her in a statement to Mediaite, calling her “one of the sharpest journalists of her or any other generation. I can’t wait to see what she does next.”
Other Beast alums and current staffers took to X to laud Connor for her work, including Kevin Fallon and Andrew Kirell.
Matt Fuller, who recently departed the Beast, heaped praise on his former boss in a lengthy thread crediting Connor for helping increase the site’s traffic. “Tracy would single-handedly turn around traffic – on the weekend or on a Tuesday,” he wrote. “She would write stories late at night. She would come up with the headline that made a story click.”
Some industry insiders took issue with the brief mention of Connor’s service in the statement from Coles and Sherwood.
“I dunno what is going on with women top editors getting like two lines in these transition notes but it’s messed up. (Also Tracy Connor is the best,” wrote Hillary Grey, Slate’s editor in chief.
In April, Barry Diller, the chairman of Beast parent company IAC, appointed Sherwood, the former president of Disney-ABC Television Group and ABC News, and Coles, the former chief content officer of Hearst Magazines, to lead the Beast. They acquired a minority stake in the site, which has produced impressive journalism but struggled with financial losses for years.
A former Beast staffer who spoke with Mediaite on condition of anonymity said the mood inside the Beast is currently dour. “People are distressed and fearful for their jobs, especially the hard news, politics, and investigative reporters,” they said. “It’s very clear there’s a change in direction.”
Diana Falzone served as a contributing editor to the Beast from 2020 to 2023.
