New York Times reorganizes digital leadership ranks

In part of an ongoing push to remake The New York Times for a constantly changing media landscape, the newspaper on Friday announced several personnel moves among the leaders of its digital efforts.

The big changes: graphics, digital news design and interactive news are now one team overseen by Assistant Editor Steve Duenes, audience development is being integrated into the main newsroom under Assistant Editor Cliff Levy and Matt Ericson, an Associate Editor at the paper, will be given an expanded portfolio of responsibilities, according to a memo from New York Times Executive Editor Dean Baquet and Kinsey Wilson.

Today, we’re announcing a number of organizational changes intended to build on those successes. They fall in three areas: visual and interactive journalism; audience development; and the tools and products we build to support our journalism. Visual journalism is quickly assuming a bigger role in our daily report, and with time we expect to have a far greater number of reporting and storytelling forms at our disposal.

Also on Friday, The New York Times announced the promotion of Nancy Gauss to the position of executive director of video. She leads a team that was once directed by former Times media editor Bruce Headlam, who left that job last year as it was being consolidated under Duenes. The video unit has since undergone a round of buyouts as part of a reorganization.

The integration of audience development into the broader Times’ newsroom is part of an industry-wide shift toward an increased emphasis on metrics and the creation of interdisciplinary teams. Vox Media, which operates websites geared toward current events, fashion, real estate and sports, has a dedicated audience development manager for each of its properties that work in concert with other editorial staffers to maximize reach.

Here’s the memo: