Keith J. Kelly

Keith J. Kelly

Media

Mashable eliminates editor-in-chief position

In the first big moves at Mashable since it took on $13.3 million in venture financing earlier this month, Chief Content Officer Jim Roberts is shaking up the ranks.

The job of editor-in-chief, held by Lance Ulanoff, has been eliminated. Ulanoff will now be chief correspondent and editor-at-large.

Roberts told Media Ink that nobody will be filling the editor-in-chief job, but he said he does not regard the new job as a demotion.

“Lance reported to me as he still does,” said Roberts, a veteran of the New York Times who had a short stint at Reuters last year before resigning in the wake of editorial shake-ups there.

Roberts joined Mashable in November.

Lance UlanoffTwitter

“Lance is one of the smartest voices in technology coverage out there. I want his byline on the site and want more video. He’s also going to develop a plan for more opinion content.”

Another former editor-in-chief of the site, Adam Ostrow, remains chief strategy officer.

Roberts said some of the funding is being used to open offices in London and Los Angeles.

“Opening offices in London and LA are a very big part of his mission,” said Roberts.

Elsewhere, Mashable hired Andrew Freedman to cover climate and extreme weather, a new position. Freedman had been a senior editor at Climate Central.

The funding by Updata Partners in January was the first outside vendor financing since the company was founded eight years ago.