Kenneth Lerer | |
|---|---|
| Born | United States |
| Occupation(s) | Businessman, media executive |
| Known for | Venture capital,HuffPost co-founder |
| Spouse | Katherine Sailer |
| Children | 2 |
Kenneth Lerer is an American businessman and a media executive. He was the chairman and co-founder ofHuffPost, an American news website acquired byAOL in 2011.[1] He is also a managing director of Lerer Hippeau, and chairman ofBetaworks andBuzzFeed.
Lerer is a past executive vice president ofAOL Time Warner[2] and was a founding partner of corporate communications firm Robinson, Lerer, and Montgomery which is based inNew York.[3] In January 2010, Lerer and his son began a seed stage venture capital fund, Lerer Hippeau Ventures.[4]
Lerer has taught at theColumbia University Graduate School of Journalism, theUniversity of Pennsylvania, andNew York University, where he lectured on the media and American corporations. He was Chairman of thePublic Theater in New York for 10 years, and is now its Chairman Emeritus.[5]
In June 2019, he announced he would step down as chairman of BuzzFeed after 10 years at the company.[6]
Lerer is married to interior designer Katherine Sailer.[7] He is Jewish.[8]
Ken Lerer has two children. His son, Benjamin, startedThrillist, an online men's lifestyle website; Benjamin is also a managing director at Lerer Hippeau.[9] His daughter, Izzie, is founder and CEO ofThe Dodo, a digital media company for people who care about animals.[10] Ken Lerer is one of the minority owners of theNew York Mets, holding a 4% stake in the baseball team.[11][12]
In 2013, Lerer launched StoptheNRA.com to advocate for the continuation of the assault weapons ban as a federal law. He later donated the website to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.[13]