Teen Vogue has appointed veteran editor Versha Sharma to be its editor-in-chief after its former pick came under fire for racist tweets in the past.
TEEN Vogue has appointed a new editor-in-chief nearly two months after the publication’s previous pick, Alexi McCammond, resigned before her start date.
The Condé Nast title is trying again with Versha Sharma, managing editor at news website NowThis. She will begin working at Teen Vogue on May 24.
McCammond made her name as a political reporter at the Washington news site Axios, and has also been a contributor to MSNBC and NBC.
In 2019, she was named the emerging journalist of the year by the National Association of Black Journalists.
She came under fire in early March when her past racist and homophobic tweets resurfaced after publisher Conde Nast announced her hiring at Teen Vogue.
Screenshots of the decade-old tweets were shared in an Instagram post by Diana Tsui, editorial director at the Infatuation.
One tweet found McCammond remarking that she was "now googling how to not wake up with swollen, asian eyes." Another found her criticizing "a stupid asian (teacher's assistant)." in her classroom.
Long experience
During her seven years at NowThis, Sharma helped lead the site’s news, politics and cultural coverage.
In 2018, she received an Edward R. Murrow award for her work on the publication’s documentary about the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. Sharma has also worked for MSNBC, Vocativ and Talking Points Memo.
“I’ve long admired the work that Teen Vogue has done, building and fostering a community of young people who want to change the world,” Sharma said in a statement published to Condé Nast’s website.
“I believe that Teen Vogue can continue to be a force for good, with a focus on empathy, accountability, optimism and impact, and it is such an honor to join this team and lead the title into the future.”
She has declined to comment on the controversy surrounding McCammond.
“I don’t really feel it’s my place to comment on that. All I can say is I share the values of the Teen Vogue staff and audience, and I’m very excited to work with them and work together moving forward,” she said.
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