Kirkus Reviews Names Tom Beer Editor In Chief

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact Sarah Kalina: 512-637-8671 or skalina@kirkus.com

AUSTIN, TX (May 29, 2019) — Today, Kirkus Media announced the appointment of Tom Beer as editor in chief of Kirkus Reviews. Beer has been the books editor at Newsday since 2007. He was a two-term board member of the National Book Critics’ Circle and served as president from 2015-2017.

“Tom Beer brings the literary sensibility Kirkus’ readers have come to expect from us along with experience and keen instincts for reporting on books in a way that connects with reading enthusiasts. At a time when Kirkus is investing in delivering more content for book consumers than ever before, and our digital audience growth is accelerating, Tom is the ideal editor to take our content to the next level and continue the beautiful work Claiborne Smith has done elevating the Kirkus brand,” said CEO, Meg Kuehn.

The appointment came after Smith, who has held the position of editor in chief for more than six years, announced his resignation. “Editing Kirkus Reviews has been a dream job,” Smith said, “but at this point in my career, I’d like to focus on writing books and supporting the San Antonio Book Festival, for which I care deeply.” Smith will be the festival’s first full-time literary director as of July 1, 2019.

Tom Beer will assume the position of editor in chief of Kirkus Reviews on June 17, 2019 and will report to Kuehn. In addition to his tenure at Newsday and the National Book Critics’ Circle, Beer was an editor at Out magazine and has written about books and other subjects for The Village Voice, The Los Angeles Times, Time Out New York and other publications.

“I’m honored and excited to be joining the team at Kirkus, which plays such a vital role in bringing news of great books to both the trade and the reading public. This is a time of dramatic change in publishing, and we intend to find new ways to bring Kirkus’ reviews, features and podcast to people who care about books,” said Beer.

 

ABOUT KIRKUS REVIEWS

For over 85 years, Kirkus has been one of the most trusted and authoritative voices in book discovery. Kirkus Reviews covers more than 7,000 books published by traditional houses and more than 3,000 self-published books every year. The magazine is published on the 1st and 15th of every month, and because of the scope of their coverage, their authoritative voice and the timeliness of their reviews, Kirkus Reviews is revered by many as the first indicator of a book’s potential. For more information, visit www.KirkusReviews.com.