Matthew Winkler, who founded Bloomberg News as a small financial newswire in 1990, is being replaced as editor-in-chief by Economist editor John Micklethwait.
Winkler will take the title editor-in-chief emeritus and will work closely with Michael Bloomberg, who will take over running Bloomberg LP full time in the beginning of 2015. Bloomberg said in a statement that Winkler will advise Bloomberg and do interviews of high profile figures.
Winkler oversaw the expansion of Bloomberg News into one of the world's largest newswrooms, with over 2,000 reporters and editors, but in recent years his direct influence was diminished as Bloomberg launched more digital and print properties. The acquisition of Businessweek and the creation of Bloomberg Digital, which will grow into a portfolio of digital publications overseen by Josh Topolsky and Justin Smith, who oversees the company's TV, radio, online, and conference businesses, have created new power centers within the news operation.
"I really look forward to working with John again. He is a world class journalist and editor with a brilliant grasp of global business and economics. We partnered closely and successfully while at The Economist Group together and I look forward to doing great things together with him at Bloomberg," said Justin Smith, CEO of Bloomberg Media Group.
Bloomberg also installed six senior executive editors under Winkler, including Laurie Hays, a former Wall Street Journal editor whose influence increased in the newsroom in the last year, according to sources close to the company.
But the core of Bloomberg News is disctinctly Winkler's. Bloomberg News stories follow The Bloomberg Way, a style guide written by Winkler, and Bloomberg reporters are evaluated on what matters most to Winkler: accuracy, speed, and being able to move markets.
"Hiring Matt Winkler 25 years ago was one of the best decisions I've ever made," Michael Bloomberg said in a statement. "He has accomplished more than either of us thought possible back then, and thanks to his exceptional leadership, Bloomberg has set a new standard for journalistic excellence."
Micklethwait has been editor in chief of The Economist since 2006, which has been able to successfully diversify, with a widely-read website, an effective paywall, and a thriving conference business. The Economist, while serving a similiar type of reader as Bloomberg, is better known for snappy, authoritative analysis and than it is for the breaking business and finance news that's Bloomberg's signature. Recently, however, more reporters within Bloomberg have been encouraged to write analysis pieces and its new digital properties like Bloomberg Markets will likely be analysis-heavy.
Bloomberg LP said in a statement that Micklethwait will oversee "editorial content across all Bloomberg platforms, including its news, newsletters, magazines, opinion, television, radio and digital properties, as well as its research services" and will work with Smith, who reports directly to Bloomberg.
"There is no one better qualified to build on Matt's legacy than John Micklethwait. He has done an extraordinary job at The Economist, and as one of the world's smartest thinkers on the forces of globalization, he is a perfect fit for Bloomberg," Bloomberg said in a statement. Smith worked with Micklethwait when he was an executive at the Economist before he joined The Week and then The Atlantic.
"When Mike left City Hall, he said the only two publications he would read
are Bloomberg Businessweek and The Economist," said Kevin Sheekey, the chairman of Bloomberg Government and a former senior aide to Michael Bloomberg in City Hall. "He has enormous respect for John and what he's done."
This piece has been updated with comment from Justin Smith and Kevin Sheekey.