Variety CEO Michelle Sobrino-Stearns is leaving her role at the entertainment publication after nearly three decades.
Sobrino-Stearns, also Group Publisher of the Penske-owned outlet and the mind behind its annual Power of Women event, announced in a memo to staffers on Tuesday that she’ll be leaving the company she joined in 1997. Her last day will be Nov. 17, after which she’ll “embark on an exciting new chapter as a founding member of a fashion brand.”
“For 28 years, working alongside the most passionate, creative, inspiring people in the entertainment business has been the honor of a lifetime,” Sobrino-Stearns wrote. “For 120 years, Variety has thrived because of the talent and leadership of the award-winning and gifted journalists in our newsroom and on our publishing teams. … Even as I take this next step, my heart will always belong to this extraordinary company and to all of you.”
Sobrino-Stearns will be passing the baton to incoming co-president and publisher Dea Lawrence, while Ramin Setoodeh will also be named co-president in addition to his role co-editor-in-chief. Setoodeh has held the latter title alongside Cynthia Littleton since 2022.
Jay Penske, chairman and CEO of Penske Media Corporation, dubbed Sobrino-Stearns “one of the most talented executives I’ve ever worked with.”
Penske commended her “fearless leadership, creativity and dedication,” which he said have been “instrumental in transforming the brand into the powerhouse it is today.”
