In case you missed it...
Shiona has been one of our favorite fashion editors and style inspirations for years, so we're thrilled to see her making major moves in her career. The Hampton University grad is vacating her post as fashion market and beauty director at CR Fashion Book to start her new gig at Cosmo on August 7. Ms. Turini's impressive resume also includes a stint at Teen Vogue as accessories director, accessories editor at W magazine and a publicist at Saint Laurent (when the "Yves" was still attached).
And as one of very few black women who has reached the upper echelons of several magazine mastheads, it makes the announcement even more exciting -- and important.
Last Summer Keija Minor was tapped as editor-in-chief of Brides, which made her the first black person to ever hold the title at a Condé Nast Publications (CNP) magazine. And a few weeks later,Elaine Welteroth became the first black woman to be named as the beauty and health director at Teen Vogue and she talked to Fashionista.com about the significance of that appointment.
"We live in a multi-cultural world, so embracing diversity is important in every industry. As it's related to publishing, I think magazines really benefit from having a staff with a range of different perspectives and cultural references so that any reader can feel like there is someone on the masthead they can relate to, someone they can trust to speak up for them. It's great to see that idea being embraced more and more."
We agree. That type of thinking and hiring will also help prevent the blatantly racist editorial content and ideology we've seen pop up from time to time.
As for Essence, it finally filled its fashion director position...
The highly anticipated appointment comes a year after firing Ellianna Placas. We don't know much about Melissa but we do know she most recently served as creative director for Uptown magazine and has worked with an awesome list of celebrities, including Michael Jackson and Iman.
Congratulations, Shiona and Melissa!
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