Veteran Gawker writer Alex Pareene was named editor-in-chief of the website on Tuesday.
Pareene replaces Max Read, who resigned in the wake of the Conde Nast gay porno story debacle. He rose to digital fame as a blogger for Gawker and Salon, known for writing that oozed in satire, dry wit and biting humor.
He’ll replace Leah Beckmann, who stepped in temporarily as editor-in-chief after Read resigned. Executive editor John Cook praised Pareene as the premiere mischief-stirrer of our time.
“Alex is one of the most talented and joyously mischievous political observers of his generation, and as we enter a presidential campaign cycle that promises to be nothing short of a terrifying circus, there is no one more suited to take Gawker’s helm,” he wrote.
“Alex will soon have more to say about the direction he intends to take Gawker in over the coming years, but you can expect satire, wit, and reporting on the grievous state of our political class.”
Pareene left Salon in 2014 to join Matt Taibbi’s “Racket” as executive editor. But the much-hyped renegade digital magazine never came to fruition as First Look Media owner Pierre Omidyar meddled with Racket chief Matt Taibbi on everything from editorial to seating charts in the office, causing Taibbi to bolt and the entire Racket staff to be laid off.
He soon returned to Gawker as special projects editor. In typical Pareene fashion, he ushered in the great news about himself with some dry wit.
I just got the weirdest email from John Cook
— the beverage hunk (@pareene) October 27, 2015