Famous 20th Century Editors

Anna Wintour is a British-American journalist. She has been working as Vogue's Editor-in-Chief since 1988. Known for having an eye for emerging fashion trends, Wintour is credited with reviving Vogue as it was viewed as a stagnating publication when she assumed control in 1988. Nicknamed Nuclear Wintour due to her demanding personality, Wintour inspired the story The Devil Wears Prada.

Christopher Tolkien was a French and English academic editor. The son of legendary author J. R. R. Tolkien, Christopher edited much of his father's work, which was published after his father's demise. Christopher Tolkien is also credited with drawing the original maps in, The Lord of the Rings, one of his father's highly acclaimed novels.

Ian Hislop is a satirist, journalist, broadcaster, writer, and editor of a magazine called Private Eye. A popular figure, Hislop has appeared in many television and radio shows over the years. Hislop is renowned for his work in the TV show Have I Got News for You where he has been a team captain since the show's inception in 1990.

Andrew Sullivan is a British-American blogger, editor, and author. A political commentator, Sullivan has contributed immensely to several publications like The New Republic, where he was an editor. From 2016 to 2020, he also worked for New York magazine, where he was a writer-at-large. In 1996, Andrew Sullivan’s book Virtually Normal won the Mencken Award under Best Book category.

Ben Bradlee was one of the most important journalists in the United States of America in the post-World War II era. From 1965 to 1991, Bradlee was associated with The Washington Post, serving as managing editor and then as executive editor. In 1988, Ben Bradlee was honored by the American Academy of Achievement with the prestigious Golden Plate Award.

Dave Eggers is an American writer, publisher, and editor. He is credited with founding a non-profit publishing house named McSweeney's Publishing and a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization called ScholarMatch. Eggers is also credited with co-founding other non-profit organizations like 826 Valencia and Voice of Witness. His novels A Hologram for the King and The Circle have been adapted into movies.

Joe Weider was a Canadian entrepreneur and bodybuilder. He is credited with co-founding the International Federation of BodyBuilding and Fitness which oversees several of the sport's international events, such as the Continental and World Championships. Weider is also credited with creating prominent bodybuilding contests like Mr. Olympia, Masters Olympia, and Ms. Olympia.

Anna Roosevelt Halsted was an American writer and newspaper editor. The daughter of Eleanor Roosevelt and Franklin D. Roosevelt, Anna played an important role during World War II, serving as her father's key advisor. After her marriage, Anna moved into the White House and served as First Lady of the USA as per her parents' request.

For many years a key member of the Beat Generation, Lucien Carr is probably better remembered for murdering a man who had been stalking him since his adolescence. Sentenced to one to twenty years in prison, he came out after two years and started his career first as a copy boy and eventually became an editor of the United Press International.

Willow Bay is an American author, editor, television journalist, and former model. She has worked with popular TV networks like NBC, CNN, and ABC. She has also contributed to major sites like Huffington Post, where she served as a senior editor. She interviewed Bill Clinton and Warren Buffett as part of the site's Newsmaker series in collaboration with Yahoo! News.

Jann Wenner is an American magazine mogul best known as the co-founder and publisher of Rolling Stone magazine. He is also credited with co-founding the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and other popular publications like Outside. During the 1970s and 1980s, Wenner played a key role in popularizing several writers like Greil Marcus, Hunter S. Thompson, and Cameron Crowe.

Mark Halperin is an American journalist who has worked for major broadcast networks like ABC News and MSNBC. His career was affected when he was accused of workplace sexual harassment during his tenure at ABC News. He was subsequently fired by NBC News and Showtime Networks and is currently appearing on Newsmax TV as a contributor.

Diana Vreeland was a French-American editor and columnist who worked for popular fashion magazines like Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. From 1963 to 1971, she served as the editor-in-chief of Vogue. In 1964, she was inducted into the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame. Diana Vreeland’s life and career inspired the 2011 documentary Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel.

Alison Tyler is the pen name of an American writer, editor, and publisher. The publisher of erotica, Tyler is credited with writing over 20 explicit novels. She has also edited over 60 erotic anthologies and is credited with founding her own publishing company called Pretty Things Press. Her work, which focuses on erotic themes, has been translated into many languages.

Charles Van Doren was an American editor and writer. Van Doren played a major role in exposing the quiz show scandal of the 1950s when he confirmed that the producers of the quiz show Twenty-One had given him the correct answers. The quiz show scandal and Charles Van Doren's participation in it inspired the 1994 detective docudrama Quiz Show.

Alan Coren was an English satirist, writer, and humorist best remembered for his association with the popular quiz show The News Quiz, which was aired on the BBC radio. A multi-talented personality, Coren also worked as a journalist and served as the editor of Punch magazine for almost a decade.

Rebekah Brooks is a British former newspaper editor and journalist. She currently works as a media executive and has been serving as News UK's CEO since 2015. In 2003, she started working as the editor of The Sun, becoming the first female editor of the tabloid. From 2009 to 2011, she served as the chief executive officer of News International.

Rob Liefeld is a comic book creator best known for co-creating characters like Deadpool and Cable. In the 1990s, he achieved popularity for his work on Marvel Comics' X-Force and The New Mutants. Rob Liefeld is credited with co-creating Image Comics which went on to become the third-largest comic book publisher.

Currently serving as the Executive Chair, Center for Investigative Reporting, Phil Bronstein is perhaps best known for his work as a war correspondent in the revolution-era Philippines and El Salvador, holding important positions in numerous organizations throughout his career.  On personal level, he is equally known for his marriage to his first wife, actress Sharon Stone.

Born to a hotelier couple in Wales, Grace Coddington grew up reading Vogue, which she later headed as its creative director. She had, at age 18, interestingly begun her modeling career with Vogue, too. However, a car accident at age 26, which disfigured her face, cut her modeling career short.

Bari Weiss is an American editor and opinion writer. Weiss has worked for publications like The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. In 2019, she was honored with the prestigious National Jewish Book Award for her book How to Fight Anti-Semitism. Weiss is also the recipient of the Bastiat Prize, a journalism award presented by the Reason Foundation.

Rachel Johnson is a British television presenter, journalist, and author. She is known for appearing in panel discussion programs and debate programs, such as The Pledge and Question Time. A well-known novelist, Johnson served as a judge of the 2013 Women's Prize for Fiction, one of the most prestigious literary prizes in the UK.

Nigel Lawson is a British journalist and Conservative politician. From 1981 to 1989, he served in the cabinet of the then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. An influential politician, Lawson has also served in many other important positions, such as the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Secretary of State for Energy, and Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Best known for his screenplays for The Book of Eli and After Earth, Gary Whitta has also written for games such as Prey and Gears of War. Also known as The Gaz, he was one of the men behind the magazine PC Gamer and once also wrote for the video-game magazine ACE.

Isabella Blow was an English editor who edited magazines like Vogue. As the muse of Philip Treacy, Blow is credited with discovering models like Sophie Dahl and Stella Tennant. Isabella Blow is also credited with supporting and enriching the career of English fashion designer and couturier Alexander McQueen. Isabella Blow committed suicide at the age of 48.

With Master’s degree in French literature, fashion designer André Leon Talley’s initial aspiration was to become a teacher. Instead he was drawn to fashion and beginning his career as unpaid apprentice for Diana Vreeland, he went to become fashion news director for Vogue magazine and then its creative director. Also an author, he has written three books, including two memoirs.

After being rejected by a dance school, Traudl Junge ditched her plan of becoming a ballerina and mastered typing instead. She later served as Adolf Hitler’s typist and was the youngest of his secretaries. After staying silent for years, she eventually revealed her experience to Austrian filmmaker Andre Heller.

Philosopher and author Roger Scruton is best remembered for his work as an editor of The Salisbury Review and for his countless books on topics such as art, sexuality, and political philosophy. He also taught at Boston University and other institutes, and was a skilled pianist and composer, too.

Jared Taylor is a white supremacist who is credited with founding an online magazine named American Renaissance for which he serves as the editor. He also serves as the president of New Century Foundation, the magazine's parent organization, through which he has published many of his books. Over the years Jared Taylor has been accused of propagating racist ideologies.

Art Spiegelman is an American cartoonist, comics advocate, and editor. His graphic novel Maus earned a special Pulitzer Prize for popularizing the comics medium among scholars. Over the years Spiegelman has helped promote a better understanding of comics. In 2005, he was named in Time's Top 100 Most Influential People list. He has also won many awards like Inkpot Award.

Apart from being an editor of The Spectator and The Sunday Telegraph, British journalist Dominic Lawson is the son of politician Nigel Lawson. An avid chess player, he has also authored a book on the sport. He is also rumored to have worked as an MI6 agent, though he has denied such claims.

Bret Stephens is an American conservative journalist, columnist, and editor. Over the years he has worked for popular publications like The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. He has also served as the editor-in-chief for The Jerusalem Post. Bret Stephens has won several prestigious awards including the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary and the Reason Foundation's Bastiat Prize.