Who’s on the Shortlist to Fill The New York Times’ Fashion Jobs

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It’s not often that two high-profile jobs open at The New York Times — and even rarer when both of those jobs concern, to varying degrees, the fashion industry.

Last week, Hugo Lindgren, editor of Times‘ Sunday magazine, announced he was moving on at the end of the year. The New York Times Magazine is internationally recognized for its investigative journalism and brilliant photography — and, to a lesser extent, its culture and fashion pieces. In addition, renowned fashion critic and reporter Eric Wilson recently left his post at the Times‘ Style section to join InStyle as fashion director.

As is always the case with editorial musical chairs, rumors are flying regarding who will fill these prestigious slots. WWD is reporting that two internal candidates are likely favorites in the search for Lindgren’s successor: Deborah Needleman, editor of T: The New York Times Style Magazine, and Sam Sifton, who has held a number of positions at the Times, most recently as the national news editor. Capital New York also says that Sifton is a candidate, along with the Times‘ Bruce Hedlam, who runs the media desk.

Since T is a such a different beast than the Sunday magazine — the former is much more fashion and culture-focused, and attracts ad dollars from luxury brands — it’s difficult for us to imagine that Needleman, with her background in running lifestyle magazines (she was editor of WSJ. and Domino before she took up the mantle at T) — would head up such a news-driven publication.

In regards to Wilson’s open position, Styles editor Stuart Emmrich told WWD that he’s “talked to about a dozen people” and is in no rush to fill the position until closer to the start of Fashion Month in February. A source tells us that Jacob Bernstein, a staff writer at the Times‘ Style section — who also happens to be Nora Ephron’s son — is a frontrunner for Wilson’s former gig. One of our favorite fashion critics, Robin Givhan, is currently a free agent, and we’re wondering if she might be on the shortlist as well.

The Times declined to comment on the speculation, but we will update as we learn more.