Guardian appoints Observer’s John Mulholland as US editor
The Guardian has appointed editor of the Observer John Mulholland as editor of the newspaper's US division.
John Mulholland (photograph: Graeme Robertson for the Guardian)
Mulholland has been editor of the Sunday paper since 2008, having joined as deputy editor in 1998. He will take on the top US job for the Guardian in spring 2018 when his replacement at the Observer will also be named.
He had been serving in the role on an interim basis since April to cover Lee Glendinning, who was on maternity leave. However, he returned to the UK to reprise his Observer duties during the Autumn.
But with this latest shake-up and Mulholland's return to the helm for the Guardian US , Glendinning has become executive editor for membership. Natalie Hanman, who currently holds the role, has become assistant editor for the global publication as a result.
Katharine Viner, editor-in-chief, Guardian News & Media said the changes would “help to shape the future of the Guardian journalism and will be critical to the success of our strategy.”
“John Mulholland has forged a powerful identity for the Observer as the paper of ideas and intellectual discourse, at the forefront of the debate over Brexit and with strong opinion writing, coverage of foreign affairs, culture and technology. He will bring similar insights, originality and verve to our Guardian US edition,” Viner said.
“Under Lee Glendinning’s editorship of the Guardian US we have published award-winning investigative projects and produced a compelling digital edition during one of the most extraordinary news periods in recent memory, encompassing a Trump election campaign and the first year of his presidency. Having led the Guardian teams and got to know the Guardian readers across three different continents, Lee is the ideal editor to take the Guardian membership to an exciting new phase.
“In just two years Natalie Hanman has taken the Guardian membership from a small-scale concept based on events with 12,000 members to a major part of the Guardian’s future with over 800,000 supporters. Natalie’s innovative work has helped us to build meaningful relationships with readers and to begin the reinvention of the Guardian’s business model. Her strong understanding of the Guardian’s role in society will be vital in helping to develop the Guardian’s mission in 2018.”
It comes after the publisher last week announced Evelyn Webster had been made chief executive of the Guardian US, while taking on the additional role of the Guardian Australia chief executive.