The Hollywood Reporter announced to staff on Thursday its new editorial director following the departure of the previous top boss amid executive-level infighting.
According to multiple people familiar with the matter, the premier entertainment trade publication announced the hiring of Nekesa Mumbi Moody, currently an entertainment editor at the Associated Press, as the magazine’s new top editorial lead.
Moody’s hiring comes as the publication has faced one of its toughest stretches in years, including financial distress and executives battling over the editorial direction of the magazine.
ADVERTISEMENT
The move comes less than a month after the publication’s former top editor Matthew Belloni left THR following a series of editorial disputes with the publication’s parent company Valence Media. Over the course of several months, Valence execs warned Belloni about coverage of Jennifer Lopez; urged the publication to kill a profile of Louise Linton, wife of U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin; and lamented the outlet’s “negative coverage of the industry.”
Several weeks after Belloni’s exit, the publication announced it was laying off dozens of staffers.
