Teen Vogue Names NowThis Editor Versha Sharma as New EIC
Courtesy NowThis/YouTube
Versha Sharma, an editor and senior correspondent at the news website NowThis will be the new editor-in-chief of Teen Vogue, according to a statement from parent company Condé Nast, and a tweet from Sharma herself Monday.
“I am incredibly excited and grateful for this awesome opportunity,” Sharma said in a tweet. “Thank you to everyone who helped me get here!”
I am incredibly excited and grateful for this awesome opportunity. Thank you to everyone who helped get me here! https://t.co/b91bjXi8Rr
— Versha Sharma (@versharma) May 10, 2021
The road to Sharma’s hiring has been a bumpy one. Axios political reporter Alexi McCammond was announced as editor-in-chief in early March, but Teen Vogue staffers soon protested, citing old racist and homophobic tweets that McCammond posted when she was a teenager. McCammond issued multiple apologies, but it wasn’t enough, and in less than two weeks, just days before she was set to start, McCammond announced that she would not be stepping into the role as planned.
“Versha is a natural leader with a global perspective and deep understanding of local trends and issues — from politics and activism to culture and fashion — and their importance to our audience,” Anna Wintour, Vogue’s global editorial director and chief content officer of Condé Nast in a statement. “She is a masterful storyteller who can move from platform to platform with ease, and I am excited by her optimistic and expansive vision for Teen Vogue.”
Prior to NowThis, Sharma was a news writer and associate publisher at TalkingPointsMemo. Previously, she covered the 2012 U.S. presidential election for MSNBC.com, and was a senior editor and reporter at Vocativ.
“I’ve long admired the work that Teen Vogue has done, building and fostering a community of young people who want to change the world,” Sharma said in the Condé Nast statement. “I believe that Teen Vogue can continue to be a force for good, with a focus on empathy, accountability, optimism, and impact, and it is such an honor to join this team and lead the title into the future.”
Sharma is set to start at Teen Vogue on May 24, 2021.
