NY Times taps Danis to be investigations editor

New York Times executive editor Joe Kahn sent out the following on Wednesday:

The secret story of Donald Trump’s taxes. The investigation of Harvey Weinstein. A groundbreaking examination of workplace exploitation of child migrants. The horrors of Instagram child influencers. The behind-the-scenes drama of how the Supreme Court drafted the Dobbs decision.

Year after year, the Investigations department produces work that exposes wrongdoing and holds power to account. It is a crown jewel of the Times newsroom, and we’re pleased to announce a new leader for the department, Kirsten Danis. Kirsten and the investigations team will be a core part of the expanding universe of signature enterprise under Jim Yardley.

Kirsten is one of our most talented editors — rigorous and creative, a valued partner to reporters, and someone who consistently delivers signature investigative work. She is toughminded, has impeccable judgment and is able to see a hole in a story — and then help the reporter fix it. She is also a fun and caring colleague who has learned the favorite snack of all her reporters and delivers it to them on deadline. (She isn’t judgmental if you have a need for Reese’s Pieces.)

“She’s a natural leader — setting high ambitions, speaking her mind with refreshing frankness, smoothly running multireporter projects, unflappable in dealing with pushback from story subjects,” said Rebecca Corbett. “She’s also a great colleague and boss. She is a quiet provider of many kindnesses. And she’s got a wicked sense of humor.”

In her first year as Metro’s investigations editor, she worked with Brian Rosenthal on his exposé about corruption in New York’s yellow cab industry, which won a Pulitzer Prize. In 2022, she was promoted to a dual role: guiding a small group of reporters in the Investigations department, while also driving and vetting investigative journalism across the newsroom. In 2023, she edited Hannah Dreier’s Pulitzer Prize-winning series that revealed the extensive and shocking use of child migrant labor across the country.

“She has incredible instincts for how to make a story bigger and more ambitious,” said Hannah. “She’s the kind of tireless, crusading editor everyone wants in their corner.”

Kirsten began her career as an obits writer for The Jersey Journal in Jersey City. She then did stints at The New York Post, The New York Daily News, The Wall Street Journal and The Marshall Project, where she was managing editor, before joining The Times in 2018 as Metro’s investigations editor.

Investigative journalism remains a core priority at The Times. Kirsten is perfect for this moment, when the need for ambitious investigative reporting is greater than ever. She’ll have more to say soon about her leadership team.

Please join us in congratulating her.