Jim Rich, Deadspin’s editor in chief, has been appointed as G/O Media’s editorial director, the company announced on Wednesday.
The editorial director role had previously been unfilled following the resignation of Paul Maidment last November. The site had been in turmoil after top editors clashed with G/O Media leadership over edicts that the site “stick to sports” coverage only — turmoil that eventually led to the mass exodus of every staffer at Deadspin.
Since then, Deadspin has attempted a relaunch under Rich — a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and former New York Daily News EIC — and with a new staff. In an interview with TheWrap in January shortly after his appointment as Deadspin’s top editor, Rich said that he wouldn’t be abiding with a “stick to sports” mandate.
“When it comes to my editorial vision here — which is the reason that I took the job — anybody who knows me and has followed any of my work throughout my career knows that I’m the farthest thing from a stick-to-sports sort of guy,” he said at the time. “Moving forward and until something changes, I’m going to go at all of these issues and all of these stories with no limit.”
Now, as G/O Media’s editorial director, Rich will be responsible for overseeing the company’s news desks for its 11 brands, which include Deadspin, The A.V. Club, Jezebel, The Onion, Jalopnik, Kotaku, Lifehacker, The Root, The Takeout and The Inventory. In doing so, Rich will be responsible for “investigative journalism practices, content creation and original reporting, including video,” the company’s announcement said.
“Jim’s career as a journalist is incredibly impressive and prepares him well to take on the duties of this very key position within G/O Media,” Jim Spanfeller, CEO of G/O Media, said in a statement. “I am thrilled that he has accepted the position of Editorial Director, not only because of his newsroom background but also because of his dedication to journalistic authenticity and steadfastness. G/O Media is proud to announce Mr. Rich’s new position as an affirmation to our business’s commitment to exceptional journalism and the continued success of our unique media properties.”