Time Inc. has named SI Managing Editor CHRIS STONE the new Editorial Dir for SI, Golf and SI Kids, overseeing content and cross-platform operations for all three brands. Stone effectively succeeds outgoing SI Group Editor PAUL FICHTENBAUM, who will depart June 30. Stone has been with SI since '92 and Managing Editor since '12. He played a key role in several SI content launches, including TheMMQB.com, SI Films and Planet Futbol, and will report to Time Inc. President of Entertainment & Sports Group and Video RICH BATTISTA (Eric Fisher, Staff Writer). ADWEEK's Emma Bazilian reported during Stone's career with SI, he has overseen coverage of "nearly every major sport as well as SI's Swimsuit Issue, which he helped expand from a yearly print magazine to a multi-platform brand." Since taking his current position four years ago, Stone has "spearheaded some of its biggest editorial moments (including exclusive cover stories on NBA player JASON COLLINS' coming out and LEBRON JAMES' return to Cleveland)." He also helped grow the magazine's "digital footprint, launching new verticals ... building Time Inc.'s first dedicated video production unit and introducing live events for franchises like SI Swim and Sportsperson of the Year" (ADWEEK.com, 6/9).
COMING TO YOU LIVE: In N.Y., Keith Kelly notes one of Stone's main jobs "is to up the ante in live events." Stone said, "Live events will be a very big part of the strategy going forward." Stone "expects to unveil 'big partnerships and big initiatives' in the coming year that he predicts will be 'game-changers.'" One of those initiatives is to "push the SI Sportsperson of the Year to loftier heights -- beyond simply a cover story in the magazine and one-night dinner event at Chelsea Piers in Manhattan." Also on tap is a plan to "extend its SI Swimsuit Issue -- the best-selling edition each year -- beyond its February base" (N.Y. POST, 6/10).
