Debra Kahn, editorial director for energy and environmental coverage; Joseph J. Schatz, deputy editor-in-chief; and Jonathan Greenberger, global editor in chief, sent out the following at Politico:
We’re excited to share how we’re organizing POLITICO’s energy and environmental reporting team — the largest and strongest of its kind in the world — as we prepare to launch a new chapter in our coverage Aug. 31.
Early this year we broke down legacy silos and unified our world-class reporting talent to focus even more squarely on the increasingly urgent storylines affecting our subscribers today. Last month, we announced a new, integrated publishing strategy, centered around five newsletters that will narrate the energy story in Washington and U.S. states, the political impact of rising energy demand in the U.S. and Europe, federal environmental policymaking and the intersection of energy industry, influence and regulation. These newsletters will, of course, rest on the bedrock of our continued best-in-class breaking news, analysis and feature stories that subscribers will continue to rely on day in and day out.
The moves below are designed to ensure POLITICO’s journalism is the definitive source on energy and environmental policy, and to make these newsletters indispensable to readers tracking how policy is made and how it reverberates through markets, politics and industry. We’re organizing around federal power – Congress, the White House and key agencies — state and regional power centers; regulation and industry; environmental policy; and transatlantic energy and climate politics. And we’re excited to announce our signature voices that will be bringing our new publications to life.
As we shared just now in a note to our global newsroom, Surge, our new guide to the global forces shaping and supplying energy demand — policy, power, technology, infrastructure and climate — will be shaped and edited by longtime climate editor Evan Lehmann. Ben Storrow, one of our preeminent U.S. reporters covering the intersection of energy, climate and policymaking, with a keen eye for industry and geopolitical energy winds, will anchor the newsletter, partnering with a powerful global team that includes: Zia Weise and James Fernyhough, who are driving coverage of the EU energy and climate transitions in Brussels; Nicolas Camut and Alexandre Léchenet, who are tracking France’s unique position in the electricity story and as home to the International Energy Agency in Paris; Charlie Cooper and Russell Hargrave, who are leading the team charting Britain’s energy challenges and the shift to net-zero; Sara Schonhardt in Washington, who has been covering global climate negotiations following more than a decade reporting across Southeast Asia; Mike Blanchfield in Ottawa, who’s done great work on the quickly evolving Canada energy beat; and — batting cleanup and ranging across Surge’s scope and beyond — Zack Colman, who has long been a leading voice on energy issues and politics for the POLITICO audience, and a familiar voice to loyal Energy podcast listeners. They’ll work with colleagues from U.S. state capitals, Ottawa, Brussels, London, Paris, Washington and Berlin, and soon Australia and Spain. Emily Yehle, our longtime West Coast evening editor, will also be taking a leadership role alongside Evan in shaping Surge and helping sharpen all of our energy and environmental coverage.
State Power, led by Mark Matthews in Washington and Edward Klump in Texas, is Pro’s authoritative guide to state-level energy policy and politics — permitting, the grid, climate laws, fossil fuels and renewable energy, including the energy conversation surrounding the AI-driven infrastructure boom. Anchored by lead author Adam Aton, with the backing of our reporters across the country and teams in our key state markets of California, New York, Florida and New Jersey, it’s our indispensable read for subscribers who need to understand what’s happening as the center of gravity on energy and climate policy increasingly shifts to the states. Think governors’ mansions, legislatures, utility commissions, regional grid operators and attorney general offices. Adam, long one of our most incisive dot-connectors across the state political landscape, will highlight coverage from Arianna Skibell in North Carolina and the Southeast, Jeff Tomich in Missouri and the Midwest, and Jason Plautz in Colorado and the Southwest, in addition to coverage from across all 50 states. Our Texas energy squad of Edward and Shelby Webb, both in Houston, and Mike Lee in Dallas, is already functioning as a key anchor of the newsletter and our daily report and will own energy and environmental developments in the Lone Star state.
Morning Energy will remain the flagship, indispensable morning tipsheet tracking energy policymaking in Washington, bringing together the best reporting from Capitol Hill, the White House and federal agencies into a sharper, faster and more authoritative morning read. Under Matt Daily’s leadership, Ben Lefebvre and Christa Marshall will guide the newsletter, with lead author Pavan Acharya, who has distinguished himself as an aggressive, ambitious reporter with a knack for collaboration and strong framing, anchoring it with contributions from reporters across the team. Ben’s oil and gas team — James Bikales, Mike Soraghan and Carlos Anchondo — will continue to be key players here.
We’re pleased to share that Laura Maggi, who has led our natural resources team for more than five years, will be stepping into a new role overseeing our new Power Moves newsletter, Pro subscribers’ guide to the intersection of energy, regulation and politics. She’ll be working closely with Matt and lead authors Joel Kirkland and Kelsey Tamborrino. Joel, a longtime anchor of our energy coverage, and Kelsey, one of our most experienced domestic energy policy reporters, will be narrating the moves at the intersection of energy and climate regulation, tech, business, infrastructure and political influence. They and the rest of the team will illuminate what regulators are deciding, why it matters, and who’s maneuvering — publicly and behind the scenes — to shape the future of the grid, carbon markets, mining, oil and gas and renewables. Alongside our oil and gas team, our energy industry team of Corbin Hiar, Hannah Northey, Ian Stevenson and AJ Camacho will track developments across a broad array of energy interests and those who regulate them.
Senior editor Erica Martinson will lead environmental coverage and Morning Environment, Pro readers’ guide to environmental policy and politics — air, water, natural resources and climate impacts. Annie Snider will join the editing ranks after years as one of our standout water reporters and play a key role in shaping the newsletter — as well as overseeing our water, chemicals and public health team of Miranda Willson, Ellie Borst and Ariel Wittenberg. On the newsletter, Annie will work alongside Alex Guillén, one of our newsroom’s deepest subject-matter experts and a master of the tone, wit and clarity that has made Morning Energy (and our bimonthly deep-dive Pro newsletter, Energy Regulation Watch) such an essential read, as he steps into a broader reporting role across our legal and environmental coverage. Pamela King will also take on an elevated role as Deputy Editor, expanding her editing portfolio beyond energy and climate litigation to include natural resources, working with Alex, Lesley Clark, Niina Farah, Marc Heller and Heather Richards. Tom Frank will lead an enlarged reporting effort covering extreme weather, disasters and resilience, working with Saqib Rahim and Chelsea Harvey. And Kevin Bogardus and Jean Chemnick will continue as the backbone of our EPA air and climate coverage, reporting to Erica.
Our congressional energy and environment team, led by senior editor Manuel Quiñones, will continue producing their best-in-class Hill coverage and bolster both Morning Energy and Morning Environment. Manuel — along with Alex Ruoff, our new deputy Congress editor, who joins us with deep congressional experience across the policy landscape — will ensure our daily report is infused with granular intelligence on the Hill’s handling of budgeting, permitting, land use, renewable energy, nuclear, electric vehicles and more, with insight into the lawmakers, committee dynamics, lobbying battles and political coalitions driving energy policy behind the scenes. This team includes Josh Siegel, Amelia Davidson, Nico Portuondo, Tim Cama and Andy Picon.
Evan, Emily, Matt, Laura, Erica, Manuel and Mark will all report to Debra.
We’ll be gearing up over the course of the summer as our teams get ready to launch their new daily newsletters on Aug. 31. Please congratulate all on their new roles and start getting excited for a new chapter in our coverage of one of the most dynamic, consequential storylines of our time.
