News Corp Australia has announced the appointment of Fiona Connolly as head of lifestyle networks
In this new role for the Editorial Innovation Centre (EIC), she will be responsible for maximising audience engagement for the media company’s lifestyle journalism across all masthead channels.
Connolly will work closely with the editorial teams of the publisher’s lifestyle brands, including Taste.com.au, delicious., Escape, Body+Soul, Kidspot, Stellar, Vogue Australia, GQ Australia, as well as the News, Sport and Business Networks and real estate teams to ensure the best content reaches the widest possible audience and is more discoverable on multiple platforms.
John McGourty, News Corp Australia’s group director EIC said Connolly’s appointment was “an important new leadership position”.
“Fiona’s new role will allow the EIC to expand the breadth of content we offer to consumers in our state mastheads – The Daily Telegraph, Herald Sun, The Courier-Mail, The Advertiser and their Sunday counterparts – as well as News’ regional titles,” he said.
“Engaging Australians who are passionate about food, travel, parenting, health and wellbeing and culture forms an increasingly important part of our strategy to engage and grow our million-plus digital subscriber audience,” McGourty added.
Connolly returns to News after a highly respected career leading some of Australia’s best-known magazine titles such as Woman’s Day, New Idea, Who and TV Week as they developed from a traditional print base to embrace digital as multi-platform publishers reaching more than five million Australian women a month.
Connolly’s experience as Are Media’s group publisher and before that as editorial director of Women’s Entertainment and editor-in-chief of Woman’s Day will be invaluable to drive the EIC’s lifestyle content strategies to achieve digital audience growth.
This new role is also a welcome return home for Connolly who had an illustrious career previously at The Daily Telegraph for more than a decade including roles as Opinion Editor and columnist, Sydney Confidential Editor and Real Estate Editor.
Connolly said of her new role: “I am thrilled to be returning to News in this exciting new role working with the best lifestyle experts in the business.”
“I am looking forward to working with brands I love and people I admire.”
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Top image: Fiona Connolly