Janine Gibson, a former editor at the Guardian who left last month after she was passed over for the position of editor-in-chief, has landed at BuzzFeed.
The New York Times reported on Tuesday morning that Gibson would be heading up the site’s UK operation, looking to hire more staff and concentrate on breaking news.
Gibson left the Guardian last month after 17 years once she was reportedly overlooked to become editor-in-chief. She distinguished herself at the paper by supervising the Pulitzer-winning coverage of the Edward Snowden leaks in 2013.
BuzzFeed editor Ben Smith tweeted an internal email about the hire on Tuesday morning:
So thrilled @janinegibson is joining us. Here’s @lukelewis‘s email to the staff of @BuzzFeedUK pic.twitter.com/60IZUQp8c9
— Ben Smith (@BuzzFeedBen) June 16, 2015
The New York Times reported that Gibson did not leave the Guardian with a secure job in place:
She did not have a plan, she said, but met with BuzzFeed’s editor in chief, Ben Smith, shortly afterward. He outlined the site’s ambitions for Britain, which, she said, seemed “like the vital combination of possible and exciting.”
BuzzFeed, which attracted nearly 13 million unique visitors from Britain in March, according to its own most recent figures, started a British operation in 2012, Mr. Smith said. As of now, Ms. Gibson said, “it is top second tier” and has room to grow.
She said she would focus on “serious news, quite a lot of innovation,” while retaining the site’s “sense of humor and liveliness.”
