Former New York Magazine reporter Olivia Nuzzi, who left the publication after disclosing a “personal relationship” with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has landed a new job at Vanity Fair.
The 32-year-old was announced as the new West Coast editor of the prestigious publication on Thursday, as part of a spate of new hires.
“Honored to join @VanityFair as West Coast Editor,” Nuzzi wrote on X, adding a heart emoji to the post.
It comes after a high-profile scandal last October, in which Nuzzi was put on leave from New York Magazine following revelations about her connection with Kennedy, who was then running as an independent candidate for president.
It led to an explosive fallout between Nuzzi and her ex-fiancé Ryan Lizza, whom she accused of orchestrating a blackmail campaign against her.
Nuzzi claimed in a lawsuit that Lizza had “threatened to make public personal information about me to destroy my life, career, and reputation—a threat he has since carried out.” Lizza denied the allegations.
However, despite questions about her journalistic integrity, Nuzzi was proudly announced among the twelve new Vanity Fair hires by Mark Guiducci.
“The range of talent and expertise in this list is expansive,” Guiducci said in a statement. “But what our new colleagues have in common is a love for Vanity Fair, an appreciation for its history, and an excitement for its future. Each of them will help lead us there.”
“In interviews with candidates over the past two months, we have been seeking out a certain fearlessness—people with a point of view, able to express it in both substance and style,” he added. “I can say that every one of our new colleagues has that quality.”
More hires would be announced shortly, Guiducci said.
Before she departed from New York Magazine, Nuzzi had garnered a reputation for her vivid, incisive features on political figures as well as deeply reported presidential campaign stories, having joined the publication in 2017.
Nuzzi and Lizza became engaged in 2022 but broke up after her relationship with Kennedy was made public. She had been writing a piece on the then-presidential hopeful at the time.
After New York Magazine’s announcement that she was being placed on leave, Nuzzi released a statement denying that the relationship with Kennedy was physical.
“Earlier this year, the nature of some communication between myself and a former reporting subject turned personal,” she said. “During that time, I did not directly report on the subject nor use them as a source.
She added: “The relationship was never physical but should have been disclosed to prevent the appearance of a conflict. I deeply regret not doing so immediately and apologize to those I’ve disappointed, especially my colleagues at New York.”
A Kennedy spokesperson told The New York Times that he had met Nuzzi “once in his life for an interview she requested, which yielded a hit piece.”
