Time Inc. named Martha Nelson as editor-in-chief, marking the first time in the publishing company’s 90-year history that a woman has held the top editorial spot.
CEO Laura Lang broke the news to staffers in an internal memo, although the move had been widely anticipated.
“Over the past year, I have come to appreciate Martha’s intellect, creativity, sense of humor and her directness,” Lang wrote in the memo. “Her insights have been very valuable to me as we chart our course for the future.”
Nelson was given a big ovation when she was introduced to the managing editors late Tuesday afternoon as the new EIC.
She succeeds John Huey, a 22-year Time Inc. veteran who earlier had announced his intention to retire at year-end. He is going to take a fellowship at Harvard’s Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy.
Nelson had been the launch editor of InStyle and People StyleWatch, two titles that helped the company broaden its appeal beyond its male-centric readership to women.
Like all leaders of legacy media companies, Nelson will grapple with declining print revenue and positioning the company for a digital future.
“I believe in the power of print, but we have to move to greater integrate the print and editorial staffs,” Nelson said in an interview. “We’re far down the path, we have a huge digital reach, but we still have a long way to go, figuring out mobile. I don’t think we’ve cracked the code on what the next generation of tablets can be.”
Nelson is also bringing Dan Okrent, a respected Time Inc. veteran, out of retirement to be an interim corporate editor.
Earlier in his career, he was the managing editor of Life magazine and the boss of Pathfinder, Time Inc.’s first big foray into the digital world. More recently, he served as the New York Times’ first public editor.
Nelson declined to comment on the rumored cutbacks that are said to be looming at Time Inc. for early next year.
Nelson was Huey’s No. 2 as Time Inc.’s editorial director, overseeing 17 magazines and websites in the Style and Entertainment Group.
She is the ninth editor-in-chief of the company founded by Henry Luce in 1922, when he launched Time.
kkelly@nypost.com
Nelson takes top editor slot at Time Inc.
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Nelson takes top editor slot at Time Inc.
