The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday announced the appointment of Steven Zeitchik to senior awards editor.
In his new role, Zeitchik will edit THR’s Oscar and Emmy special issues and related weekly features. In this capacity, he will closely collaborate with Scott Feinberg, executive editor of awards, and Beatrice Verhoeven, deputy awards editor. Zeitchik will be based in Los Angeles and report to THR deputy editorial director Jeanie Pyun.
Zeitchik has been covering media and entertainment for nearly two decades. He spent eight years reporting on Hollywood for The Los Angeles Times as well as conducting frequent foreign-reporting tours to hotspots such as Cairo and Ukraine. He was a staff writer for five and a half years at The Washington Post, where he covered the business of entertainment as well as AI, VR, crypto and all cutting-edge developments. His work often focuses on the intersection of entertainment and business, and he provides insightful analysis on how movies and TV impact broader cultural and economic trends.
Zeitchik’s hire demonstrates the importance of the awards category to THR and the brand’s continued commitment to this vibrant and essential aspect of the entertainment industry.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Steve onto our talented awards team,” said Maer Roshan and Nekesa Mumbi Moody, THR’s co-editors-in-chief. “We are laser-focused on bringing our audience the most elevated, informative and innovative coverage. Steve’s expertise across a range of subjects and his insightful application to the entertainment industry, coupled with his deeply analytical approach, will further enrich, invigorate, and amplify our awards coverage moving forward.”
Zeitchik previously worked at THR in the late 2000s covering awards.
“I can’t wait to work with the THR staff, so many of whom I’ve been fans of as both a reader and a colleague,” he said. “This is a homecoming of sorts. I’m excited to return and hope no one touched my mug.”
Zeitchik is the author of My Green Obsession, about the life of a Jets fan; a winner of the Arthur Burns foreign-reporting prize from Berlin; founder of a newsletter about AI and the future; a recipient of a Fulbright grant to Germany; and a past SXSW documentary-film jury member.
Earlier this week, THR also announced the appointment of Liz Culley as vp entertainment sales and head of special projects. In her new role, Culley will be responsible for partnering with advertisers to create bespoke integrated marketing solutions across THR’s platforms. She will focus on FYC Awards opportunities as well as podcasts, experiential events and other special projects.
The news of Zeitchik’s and Culley’s hires comes on the heels of The Hollywood Reporter’s big showing at last month’s SoCal Journalism Awards, where THR won a total of 11 first-place prizes, including best website as well as print journalist of the year for Rebecca Keegan.
