Janice Min | |
---|---|
Born | Janice Byung Min Atlanta, Georgia USA |
Education | Columbia University, Columbia School of Journalism |
Occupations |
|
Notable credits |
|
Spouse | Peter Sheehy (m. 1997) |
Children | 3 |
Janice Min is an American media executive. She started her career in journalism, working at People magazine and InStyle , and was editor-in-chief at Us Weekly from 2002 to 2009. As a co-owner, co-president, and CCO, she revamped entertainment industry publications The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard Magazine . [2] [3] In 2021, she became the chief executive officer, editor-in-chief, and co-owner of Ankler Media . [4]
Min has won an Emmy Award , was named "Editor of the Year" by Adweek , was listed on CNN's "11 Most Consequential Media and Technology Figures of 2023," and has been described as having "Oprah-esque power over celebrity culture." [5] [6]
She has been a guest on Real Time with Bill Maher , Morning Joe , Power Lunch , and Newsnight , among others. [7] [8] [9] [10]
Janice Min, the youngest of three children, was born in Atlanta, [11] [12] to Nungsun Min, an IRS agent, and Hong Min, a zoology professor turned businessman. [11] [13] [14] Her father taught at the University of Georgia [15] and later became an executive for a medical supply company. [16] Min's parents emigrated to the United States from Seoul, South Korea. [13] [14]
Min grew up mostly in Littleton, Colorado, where her family moved just before she started first grade. [14] She excelled in school, skipping third grade and graduating high school at age 16. As a child, Min was a fan of journalist Connie Chung. [13] Min said her parents were "oddly permissive" of her interest in journalism for Asian-American immigrants. [13] Min also had an interest in fashion, ever since she was a little girl. [11]
When Min was 13, she lied about her age, saying she was 14, to get a job at McDonald's. [14] In middle school and at Heritage High School, she contributed to the schools' student newspapers. [14] Min worked at a clothing store in a local mall, became a cashier at Target, and sold cosmetics at Foley's during a summer break in college. [14] She interned one summer at MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour. [17]
Min moved to New York City to attend Columbia University when she was 16. [14] There she met her future husband, Peter Sheehy, [14] and graduated in 1990 with a degree in history. [17] She also obtained a master's degree in journalism from the same university. [15]
Min began her journalism career in 1991 as a reporter for The Reporter-Dispatch in Westchester County, New York. [18] She covered the crime beat, as well as local school board and planning committee meetings, among other topics. [17]
Min joined People magazine in 1993 as a staff writer. [11] [19] She did not have an interest in celebrity gossip, but was looking for a job and had a friend that worked there. [14] [20] At first, Min struggled at People. According to one of her former coworkers, she was a "poor writer". Paula Chin, then-senior editor of the magazine, mentored her. [11] Min became better suited for the position as People began to focus on lighter stories. She covered fashion for the "Style Watch" section, which became a regular weekly feature. [11] Min was promoted to senior editor in 1997. [11]
After five years at People, [17] Min left the paper and briefly joined Life Magazine [11] as the assistant managing editor. [12] According to Adweek, she was "bored and miserable" at Life, because of the slower pace of a monthly publication. Min left in 1998, after less than a year at Life, to work for InStyle under the same job title. [11] [12] There she led the development of InStyle Weddings and InStyle Makeover. [11] In 2001, Min quit InStyle and started looking for another position. [11]
In 2002, Min applied for the editor-in-chief position at Us Weekly and was instead hired as an executive editor under Bonnie Fuller, who became editor-in-chief. [11] [16] The following July, Fuller resigned and Min was appointed to take her place. [17] [18] [21]
According to The New York Times, Min turned Us Weekly into one of the magazine industry's "major success stories". [22] [23] Public interest in celebrity news was growing, as was the magazine's circulation. [13] In her role at Us Weekly, Min had a significant impact on popular culture [11] [23] and was influential in creating an industry for celebrity gossip. [24] For example, Us Weekly was largely responsible for the popularity of the reality TV show about a couple with eight children, Jon & Kate Plus 8 , after it featured John and Kate on the cover of eight sequential issues. [24] Min focused much of the publication's editorial on reality TV stars, rather than actors and singers. [25] According to Adweek, Min positioned celebrities as the reader's friend who "can take a little good-natured ribbing" and fostered more cooperative relationships with celebrities. [11] [20] According to Elle, Min depicted celebrities as people that "may make dumb, even craven, moves, but are never villains". [13] According to The Los Angeles Times, Min "softened the tone and made it much more friendly to stars". [25] Min also created a calmer environment in the workplace, which had previously been dramatic and contentious. [22] Under Min's tenure, the publication's circulation grew from 800,000 copies per week in 2000 to 1.9 million by 2009. [24]
Min had negotiated a contract that partially tied her compensation to the number of magazines sold. As distribution increased, her salary peaked at $2 million a year. [15] [24] She left in August 2009 as her contract was up for renewal and ad revenues at the publication were decreasing. [22] For her work at Us Weekly, Min was named AdWeek magazine's Editor of the Year. [11] [14] While in-between jobs, Min received job offers from women's magazines, but was not interested. She spent ten months with her family. [15]
Min was influential in creating an interest in celebrity pregnancies in popular culture through her work at Us Weekly. [26] Shortly after she left, Min got a deal with St. James Press to write a book, How to Look Hot in a Minivan: A Real Woman's Guide to Losing Weight, Looking Great, and Dressing Chic in the Age of the Celebrity Mom, which received favorable reviews. [13] [26] [27] [28] In August 2012, she wrote a column in The New York Times complaining about unrealistic weight and beauty expectations for new moms, set by celebrities. She was criticized in blogs and social media for criticizing an aspect of popular culture she helped establish. Min said the magazine was responding to reader interests, not creating them. [26]
In December 2009, the CEO of Prometheus Global Media, Richard Beckman, acquired The Hollywood Reporter. [29] According to The Daily Beast, The Hollywood Reporter was "in a death spiral". [15] It had become too friendly to the celebrities it covered and was losing readership to competitor Daily Variety. [13] [21] After seeing in The New York Post that Min was moving to Los Angeles, Beckman began courting her to lead the publication's turnaround. [13] She was named editorial director of The Hollywood Reporter in May 2010. [21] [30]
Four months after Min took the position, The Hollywood Reporter was re-launched [29] as a weekly, glossy magazine. [30] [31] She focused the publication's editorial on in-depth feature stories and visuals. [31] According to The New York Times, "she published 3,000-word profiles of and about Hollywood, plus plenty of juicy photo galleries and lighter items" as opposed to "quick blurbs about comings and goings". [21] She avoided the re-written press releases and industry jargon that were common in prior issues. Some of the subjects upon which she focused included box office numbers, controversies, fashion and personal celebrity news. [13] [29] Min created art and photography departments and hired more journalists. [29] The publication also began hosting Oscar and Emmy award parties for nominees. [30] [31]
Min led the modernization of the publication's website as well. [30] [31] The Hollywood Reporter's web traffic increased 800 percent under her tenure at the publication and revenue increased 50 percent. [21] [29]
In January 2014, Min was promoted to co-president/chief creative officer of the Entertainment Group of Guggenheim Media. In this role she became the head of both The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard. [30] [31] Billboard was still considered the most reputable magazine in the music industry, but it was losing readers and writers due to a tumult in the music industry. Min was appointed to lead a similar turnaround as the one she facilitated at The Hollywood Reporter. [31]
In 2018, Janice Min joined Quibi, Jeffrey Katzenberg's video startup business, to lead its daily news shows rubric called Daily Essentials. In September 2019, Min exited Quibi, ahead of its April 2020 launch. [32]
In 2021, Min collaborated with Richard Rushfield to launch Ankler Media, which expanded the Substack newsletter focused on entertainment news called The Ankler into a larger media business to include podcasts and events, also covering the entertainment business. [33] [34] Min currently serves as co-owner, CEO, and Editor in Chief of Ankler Media. [35] [36] [37]
Min and Rushfield took part in an incubator program for this venture through Y Combinator to raise seed capital in June, 2022. [38] [39]
Year | Nominated work | Category | Award | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2005 | US Weekly | Editor of the Year [40] | Adweek | Won |
2006 | US Weekly | 40 Under 40 [41] | Crain's New York | Won |
2007 | Journalism | Distinguished Achievement Award [42] | Columbia University of Journalism | Won |
2007 | US Weekly | 50 Most Powerful Women in NYC (#18) [43] | New York Post | Won |
2009 | Achievement in Journalism [44] | KoreAm Award | Won | |
2012 | Career Achievement [45] | National Entertainment Journalism Luminary Award | Won | |
2014 | The Hollywood Reporter in Focus: The Wolf of Wall Street | Arts and Culture/History [46] | Emmy Award | Won |
2015 | The Hollywood Reporter | General Excellence in the Special Interest Category [47] | National Magazine Award | Won |
2015 | The Hollywood Reporter | Best Fashion Issue Of A Non Fashion Magazine [48] | Fashion Media Award | Won |
2016 | Significant Contribution to the Communications Industry [49] | Matrix Award | Won | |
2016 | Honor Medal for Distinguished Service [50] | Missouri School of Journalism | Won | |
2016 | The Hollywood Reporter | Print and Digital Media [51] | National Magazine Award | Won |
2016 | The Hollywood Reporter Roundtables | Variety (Video Series & Channels) [52] | Webby Award | Nominated |
2017 | Close Up With The Hollywood Reporter | Outstanding Special Class Series [53] | Daytime Emmy Award | Nominated |
2017 | The Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media | Exceptional Woman in Publishing [54] | Exceptional Woman in Publishing Award | Won |
2023 | The Ankler | Leading Women of 2023 [55] | Ad Age | Won |
2023 | The Ankler | 11 Most Consequential Media and Technology Figures of 2023 [56] | CNN | Won |
2023 | The Ankler | Independent Publisher [57] | Webby Award | Nominated |
2024 | The Ankler | Independent Publisher [58] | Webby Award | Nominated |
Janice Min currently resides in Los Angeles, with her husband, Peter Sheehy, who is director of a nonprofit organization called KidUnity and a history teacher at Harvard-Westlake School. [13] [59] [60] They have three children - Lila, Tate and Will. [61] [62] In 2019, it was reported that Min purchased an $8 million mansion located in Brentwood, Los Angeles. [63] She previously bought two properties in the Pacific Palisades in 2010 and 2017 respectively. [59]
Jennifer Lynn Affleck, also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential Latin entertainers of her time, credited with breaking barriers for Latino Americans in Hollywood and helping propel the Latin pop movement in music. She is also noted for her impact on popular culture through fashion, branding, and shifting mainstream beauty standards.
The Hollywood Reporter (THR) is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large-format print magazine with a revamped website. As of 2020, the day-to-day operations of the company are handled by Penske Media Corporation through a joint venture with Eldridge Industries. The magazine also sponsors and hosts major industry events.
Us Weekly is an American weekly celebrity and entertainment magazine based in New York City. Us Weekly was founded in 1977 by The New York Times Company, who sold it in 1980. It was acquired by Wenner Media in 1986, and sold to American Media Inc. in 2017. Shortly afterward, former editor James Heidenry stepped down, and was replaced by Jennifer Peros. The chief content officer of American Media, Dylan Howard, oversees the publication.
LA Weekly is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. The paper covers music, arts, film, theater, culture, and other local news in the Los Angeles area. LA Weekly was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin, and he served as the publication's editor from 1978 to 1991, as well as its president from 1978 to 1992.
Tamar Estine Braxton is an American singer, songwriter, actress and television personality.
Rumer Glenn Willis is an American actress. The eldest daughter of actors Bruce Willis and Demi Moore, she made her acting debut opposite her mother in the coming-of-age drama Now and Then (1995). She subsequently appeared in films such as Striptease (1996), Hostage (2005), The House Bunny (2008), Sorority Row (2009), and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019). She portrayed Gia Mannetti on The CW teen drama series 90210 (2009–2010) and Tory Ash on the FOX musical drama series Empire (2017–2018). Willis won season 20 of the ABC dance competition television series Dancing with the Stars, and made her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in the musical Chicago on September 21, 2015.
Ashley Michelle Tisdale is an American actress and singer. During her childhood, she was featured in over 100 advertisements and had minor roles on-screen and in theatre. She achieved mainstream success as Maddie Fitzpatrick in the Disney Channel teen sitcom The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2005–2008). This success was heightened when she starred as Sharpay Evans in the High School Musical film series (2006–2008). The success of the films led to Tisdale's signing with Warner Bros. Records and subsequently releasing her debut studio album, Headstrong (2007), which was a commercial success, earning a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Tisdale also provides the voice of Candace Flynn in the Disney Channel animated series Phineas and Ferb.
Vera Ann Farmiga is an American actress. Farmiga began her professional acting career on stage in the original Broadway production of Taking Sides (1996). After expanding to television and film, her breakthrough came with her starring role as a drug addict in the drama Down to the Bone (2004). She then had roles in the political thriller The Manchurian Candidate (2004), the crime drama The Departed (2006), and the historical drama The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (2008). She was also established as a scream queen for her performances in the horror films Joshua (2007) and Orphan (2009).
Bonnie Fuller is a Canadian media executive who is the owner and editor-in-chief of Hollywood Life. Fuller previously worked as editor-in-chief for publications such as YM, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, and Us Weekly.
Nikki Jean Finke was an American blogger, journalist, publisher and writer. She also was the founder, editor-in-chief and president of Deadline Hollywood, a website with original content consisting of reporting and commentary on the business of the entertainment industry by her and other show business journalists. She founded and was the chief executive officer of Hollywood Dementia LLC and its website, HollywoodDementia.com, for showbiz short fiction.
Selena Marie Gomez is an American singer, actress, producer, and businesswoman. She began her career as a child actress, appearing on the television series Barney & Friends (2002–2004), and emerged as a teen idol for her leading role on the Disney Channel sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place (2007–2012). She signed with Hollywood Records in 2008 and formed the band Selena Gomez & the Scene, which released three albums: Kiss & Tell (2009), A Year Without Rain (2010), and When the Sun Goes Down (2011).
Billboard is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events and styles related to the music industry. Its music charts include the Hot 100, the 200, and the Global 200, tracking the most popular albums and songs in various music genres. It also hosts events, owns a publishing firm and operates several television shows.
Variety is an American trade magazine owned by Penske Media Corporation. It was founded by Sime Silverman in New York City in 1905 as a weekly newspaper reporting on theater and vaudeville. In 1933, Daily Variety was launched, based in Los Angeles, to cover the motion-picture industry. Variety's website features entertainment news, reviews, box office results, plus a credits database, production charts and film calendar.
Penske Media Corporation is an American mass media, publishing, and information services company based in Los Angeles and New York City. It publishes more than 20 digital and print brands, including Variety, Rolling Stone, Women's Wear Daily, Deadline Hollywood, Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, Boy Genius Report, Robb Report, Artforum, ARTNews, and others. PMC's Chairman and CEO since founding is Jay Penske.
Prometheus Global Media was a New York City–based B2B media company. The company was formed in December 2009, when Nielsen Company sold its entertainment and media division to a private equity-backed group led by Pluribus Capital Management and Guggenheim Partners. Guggenheim acquired Pluribus's stake in the company in January 2013, giving it full ownership under the division of Guggenheim Digital Media.
Kim Masters is an American entertainment journalist. She is an editor-at-large at The Hollywood Reporter. She is also host of KCRW's weekly radio show "The Business."
Ankler Media is an American digital media company owned by the Ankler Media Group. In 2021, its Hollywood newsletter, The Ankler, was listed as one of the top three business publications on Substack and has been nominated for two Webby Awards.
Richard Rushfield is an American entertainment journalist, editor, and author. He has won two SoCal Journalism Awards from the Los Angeles Press Club and has been a contributing writer for the New York Times, the Washington Post, and Vanity Fair, among others. As entertainment web editor for the LA Times, he covered American Idol extensively which led him to authoring, "American Idol: The Untold Story," which received favorable reviews by Kirkus and Publishers Weekly. He is the editorial director, chief columnist, and co-owner of Ankler Media. "The Ankler," its Hollywood newsletter about the entertainment industry, earned him two Webby Award nominations in 2023 and 2024.