Former Editor-in-Chief, Vanity Fair
Radhika Jones: Biography at a Glance
- Radhika Jones served as editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair from 2017–2025 and previously held senior editorial roles at The New York Times, TIME, and The Paris Review.
- She joined Vanity Fair from The New York Times, where she was Editorial Director, Books, overseeing daily and Sunday reviews and expanding the desk’s digital coverage at the intersection of books, news, and ideas. As deputy editor at TIME, Jones led the editorial and aesthetic direction of the weekly magazine and steered the multi-platform Time 100 and Person of the Year franchises.
- Prior to joining TIME, Jones was the managing editor of The Paris Review, where she commissioned and edited fiction and nonfiction pieces. She was also the managing editor at Grand Street, an editor at Artforum, and the arts editor of The Moscow Times, where she began her career.
- Radhika is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Biography
Radhika Jones, a writer, editor, and scholar, served as editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair from 2017–2025. She previously held senior editorial roles at The New York Times, TIME magazine (where she oversaw TIME's Person of the Year and Time 100 franchises), and The Paris Review. She has also worked as an editor and columnist at Artforum, Bookforum, and Grand Street.
During her tenure, Vanity Fair was widely recognized for its fresh new direction. Beginning with her first, groundbreaking cover subject, Lena Waithe, Jones repositioned VF as a cultural barometer, leading a purposeful modernization of the brand while also expanding its platform reach to documentary, TV, podcasts, and beyond. Her mission was to capture the zeitgeist, while also looking ahead to spotlight the most important and influential artists, activists, and intellectuals of our time. The special September 2020 issue “The Great Fire,” guest-edited by Ta-Nehisi Coates, with its cover painting of Breonna Taylor by Amy Sherald, was a milestone for the publication, drawing attention to the intersection of art, activism, and social justice. Over the years, the magazine was honored for work ranging from photography and design to profile writing, and political and investigative journalism. Under Jones's leadership, Vanity Fair’s audience grew widely across digital and social channels, representing a new, more diverse readership.
As an editor and journalist, Jones has interviewed a wide range of notable figures including President Barack Obama (for TIME's Person of the Year issue in 2012), Barbra Streisand, Bob Iger, Serena Williams, Simone Biles, Kathryn Bigelow, James Murdoch, Marilynne Robinson, Peter Carey, John McEnroe, Shonda Rhimes, Brie Larson, Laura Dern, Bela Bajaria, Helen Fielding, Hugh Jackman, and Malala.
Jones was born in New York City and grew up in Cincinnati and Connecticut. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and son and serves on the nonprofit boards of The Paris Review and of CARE. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Topics
The Art of Decision-Making in High-Stakes Leadership
In this thought-provoking talk, Radhika Jones unpacks the delicate balance between data and instinct in leadership, sharing how she has navigated some of the most difficult editorial and strategic decisions in her role at Vanity Fair. From reimagining iconic covers to shifting the cultural lens of a legacy publication, Jones offers a behind-the-scenes look at how intuition, values, and courage play a vital role when there’s no clear roadmap.
Audiences will gain insight into her decision-making process from listening to her gut instincts and considering long-term impact to handling public scrutiny and internal pressure. With transparency and poise, Jones reflects on moments where going against conventional wisdom paid off. This conversation is an invitation to leaders at all levels to develop their internal compass, recognize the power of informed intuition, and make bold decisions that reflect not just strategy but also vision and integrity.
Authentic Leadership in Unprecedented Times
Radhika Jones shares her journey as the groundbreaking editor of Vanity Fair, where she redefined the cultural institution with a bold, inclusive, and forward-thinking vision. Drawing from her experience leading a legacy media brand through cultural transformation, industry disruption, and global uncertainty, Jones offers powerful insights into what it means to lead with authenticity, clarity, and courage.
She explores how to stay true to your values while making difficult decisions, how to inspire teams through change, and how to build trust and credibility in environments marked by rapid evolution and heightened scrutiny. With thoughtful anecdotes and a deep understanding of media, culture, and leadership, Jones invites audiences to consider how authenticity can be a stabilizing force and a source of innovation when navigating the unknown.
This is a talk for leaders who are not afraid to challenge convention, embrace complexity, and lead with purpose.
