Welcome to Technology for Publishing’s roundup of news highlighting women’s roles, contributions, and achievements in the evolving media business. This latest installment covers the first black woman to be elected president of Harvard Law Review, alleged “systemic compensation disparities” at Google, a lunch interview with former Cosmopolitan EIC and best-selling author Kate White, a global organization that trains women to be local reporters, and more.
A Step Forward…
ImeIme Umana (pictured) is the new president of Harvard Law Review, the first black woman to be elected to the position in the 130-year-old law journal’s history. According to The New York Times, the seat is the highest-ranking student position at the law school and “a ticket to virtually anywhere in the legal realm.” The previous president, Michael Zuckerman, called Umana’s election “historic” in an email excerpt published by Vibe: “For a field in which women and people of color have for too much of our past been marginalized or underrepresented, her election is an important and encouraging step toward a richer and more inclusive legal conversation.” Umana, who plans on becoming a public defender, will head a team of more than 90 student editors during her tenure. Published monthly November through June, the Review is considered the most circulated law journal in the world.
…But Still 82 Cents for Every Dollar
On Equal Pay Day (April 4), established to highlight how much longer a woman has to work to earn the same pay as a man, Google announced it had “closed the gender pay gap globally.” Not so, says the U.S. government, which is alleging “systemic compensation disparities” at the company—a well-documented problem across the tech industry. According to the Guardian, the charges emerged as part of a U.S. Department of Labor investigation into the compensation practices of Google, which as a government contractor must provide information related to compliance with equal opportunity laws. After it refused to release salary data to the government, calling the requests “overbroad” and in violation of employee privacy, the DoL filed a lawsuit in January seeking to cancel all of Google’s government contracts until the company complies. While Google said in a statement that it “vehemently disagrees” with the DoL’s claims, department officials said after a federal court hearing last week that “compelling evidence of significant discrimination against women” exists and that the DoL needs additional documentation “to understand what’s causing the disparities” found.
‘Pick a Lane’
At a lunch with columnist Diane Lehane, former Cosmopolitan EIC and best-selling author Kate White offered a glimpse into her now full-time writing life—and how she managed to not only become a “star editor” at Hearst earlier in her career but also produce 11 works of fiction, six Bailey Weggins mysteries, five psychological thrillers, and numerous career books. And there’s more to come: According to Lehane’s Adweek post, the prolific writer will publish her 12th book, another Bailey Weggins mystery, in October. White, also a popular speaker, has this advice for aspiring writers: “You have to figure out your writer’s cocktail—what time of day works for you, the best surface for you to write on, and how long you can go.” And “pick a lane,” she adds. “You have to go big—big within your lane.” White cautions, however, that magic doesn’t just happen. She writes seven days a week and researches her subjects and genres to make sure they will sell: Facebook “likes” and other social media activity—while important—”don’t translate into sales,” she says.
Providing a voice
Foreign correspondent Cristi Hegranes was only 25 years old when she founded Global Press in 2006, an organization that trains women to become local reporters, particularly in developing countries. A Nieman Lab post on Hegranes’ efforts says the aim is to break the mold of foreign correspondents—mostly white men from Western countries—and increase the diversity of topics being covering. Since its launch, Global Press has established 42 bureaus across 26 countries (including on Native American reservations in the U.S.), training more than 180 women, many of whom have no journalism background and don’t speak English, the report notes. Today, the organization is trying to move away from its reliance on philanthropy toward a membership program and cross-border initiatives that provide free access to Global Press content through U.S. news outlets. “These are local women who would never otherwise have this opportunity,” says Hegranes. Adds assignment editor Natalia Aldana, “The women are underrepresented. They say the voices of their community are underrepresented, both at home and abroad. That’s the terrible and great thing of each training we do.”
Hiring News Roundup
- Staci Hallmon-Bazzani was promoted to vice president and brand sales director at Essence, where she most recently served as national sponsorship director.
- Elena Bergeron was promoted to editor in chief at SB Nation, a new title at Vox Media’s sports site.
- Kelly Bourdet is now editor in chief of Gizmodo.com. She previously served as editorial director of Vocativ and, prior to that, deputy editor at Refinery29.
- Denise Bornschein was promoted to associate publisher at Modern Luxury’s Beach Magazine. Prior to joining the company, she worked at Dan’s Papers, Hamptons Magazine, the New York Daily News, and the New York Post.
- Leila Brillson joined Playboy.com as executive editor. Prior to her appointment, Brillson was a consultant for Hearst’s Snapchat Discover channels and, prior to that, was vice president of digital at Nylon and entertainment director at Refinery29.
- Angela Burt-Murray was appointed deputy editor at Glamour. She previously was editor in chief at Essence and a co-founder of the Cocoa Media Group. Burt-Murray has also co-authored a novel and early in her career was executive editor of Teen People and Honey magazines.
- Erica Carter was promoted to CEO at Livingly Media and appointed to its board. Carter had served as senior vice president and general manager at the company.
- Anne-Marie Curtis was promoted from fashion editor to editor in chief at Elle. Before joining Elle, Curtis was a founder of Wallpaper and worked as a consultant for several fashion brands.
- Jennifer Darling was appointed editor in chief of Allrecipes. Most recently she was editorial director for Better Homes & Gardens Special Interest Publications.
- Didi Gluck returned to Meredith’s Shape as a deputy editor. Gluck has also worked for More and Marie Claire.
- Bethany Heitman is the new editor in chief at StyleWatch, where she has served as interim editor since late last year. Heitman previously worked at Seventeen and Cosmopolitan.
- Beth Jacobson was promoted to vice president of communications at Time Inc.’s Entertainment Weekly, where she was previously the brand’s senior director of communications.
- Diana Lawrence, former vice president and director of integrated publishing at Carat, joined Horizon Media as director of digital.
- Joanne Lipman was named editor in chief of Gannet’s USA Today, previously serving as chief content officer at the company. Prior to joining Gannett, Lipman was principal at Surrey Lane Media LLC.
- Lindsay Nelson was named Vox Media’s first chief marketing officer. She previously headed the publisher’s branded content business.
- Marnie Perez was named vice president of communications at Time Inc.’s People. For the past 17 years, Perez has been the title’s director of communications.
- Roma Vakil is Bloomberg Media’s new global head of subscription revenue and strategy. Vakil has also worked at Bloomberg Businessweek and Bloomberg Markets.
- Andrea Valdez, previously digital editor at Texas Monthly, is the new editor of Wired.com.
- Jill Waage is now editor in chief of Meredith’s Traditional Home. She previously held various positions at Better Homes & Gardens, including brand executive editor, editorial director of home content, and executive editor of special interest media.
- Hanya Yanagihara was named editor in chief of T: The New York Times Magazine. Yanagihara is returning to the magazine, where she served as deputy editor until leaving that position last April. She is also the author of two novels.
- Jessica Zielke was appointed general manager of events for Atlantic Media’s Government Executive Media Group. Prior to taking on the new role, Zielke was assistant chief of protocol for ceremonials at the U.S. State Department.
Let us know in the comments if there are any other recent stories or career moves you’d like us to include in our next Women in Media roundup.
Photo: Tony Luong, The New York Times
Technology for Publishing’s Women in Media blog highlights the news and achievements of female leaders and role models in the publishing and media industry. Look for our in-depth profiles and interviews of top women to watch. Is there someone you’d like to nominate for an upcoming Q&A? Drop us a note!
Posted by: Margot Knorr Mancini
