Kenneth Lerer is an American businessman and a media executive. He was the chairman and co-founder of ''

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

'', an American news website acquired by Aol in 2011. Lerer is also a managing director of Lerer Hippeau Ventures, and chairman of Betaworks and BuzzFeed.

Career

Lerer is a past Executive Vice President of

AOL Time Warner Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...

and was a founding partner of New York-based corporate communications firm Robinson, Lerer, and Montgomery. In January 2010, Lerer and his son began a seed stage venture capital fund, Lerer Hippeau Ventures. Lerer has taught at the

Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism is located in Pulitzer Hall on the university's Morningside Heights campus in New York City. Founded in 1912 by Joseph Pulitzer, Columbia Journalism School is one of the oldest journalism s ...

, the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

, and

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

, where he lectured on the media and American corporations. He served as Chairman of the

Public Theater The Public Theater is a New York City arts organization founded as the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954 by Joseph Papp, with the intention of showcasing the works of up-and-coming playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: An American ...

in New York for 10 years, and is now its Chairman Emeritus. In June 2019, he announced he would step down as chairman of BuzzFeed after ten years at the company.

Personal life

Lerer is married to interior designer Katherine Sailer. Ken Lerer has two children. His son, Benjamin, started

Thrillist Thrillist is an online media website covering food, drink, travel and entertainment. The company was founded in 2004 and is based in New York City, United States. In October 2016, Thrillist merged with internet brands '' The Dodo'', NowThis Ne ...

, an online men's lifestyle website, and is also a managing director at Lerer Hippeau Ventures. His daughter, Izzie, is founder and CEO of The Dodo, a digital media company for people who care about animals. Lerer is one of the minority owners of the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

, holding a 4% stake in the baseball team.

Politics

In 2013, Lerer launched StoptheNRA.com to advocate for the continuation of the assault weapons ban as a federal law. He subsequently donated the website to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lerer, Kenneth Living people Year of birth missing (living people) People from New York City Columbia University faculty New York University faculty University of Pennsylvania faculty 21st-century American businesspeople HuffPost American media executives