David Munk appointed to lead publication following Lenore Taylor’s resignation
Updated ,first published
The Guardian Australia has appointed David Munk as its new editor after Lenore Taylor resigned in February following nearly a decade in the role.
British-born Munk spent five years as the deputy editor of the Australian edition under Taylor, and has held senior editorial roles with the organisation in the United Kingdom. He was flown in from the UK to act as editor after Taylor’s abrupt departure.
Munk, a former deputy foreign editor at the Guardian in the UK and head of world news at the UK Daily and Sunday Telegraph said he was delighted with the appointment, which was made permanent on Monday.
“From small beginnings, the Guardian is now such an important part of Australian society as well as its fast-changing media landscape,” Munk said in a statement.
“Thanks to three brilliant previous editors we have built something special across the land and I will make it my mission to ensure we continue to give our readers, viewers and listeners the courageous, groundbreaking – and crucially independent – journalism they have come to expect from our amazing staff.”
Guardian News and Media editor-in-chief Katherine Viner said Munk brought “great verve, creativity, openness and commitment to his work”.
Munk’s formal appointment marks the beginning of a new era for the left-wing publication. When Taylor resigned in February, she was the longest-serving editor in the country. But her abrupt departure also followed months of tension between Taylor and her most senior colleague in the country, local managing director Rebecca Costello.
Taylor said that the new appointment left the Guardian in good hands. “He was a great deputy and I think he’ll be a great editor,” she said on Monday.
Kishor Napier-Raman is a senior business writer for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Previously he worked as a CBD columnist and reporter in the federal parliamentary press gallery.Connect via X or email.