Raina Kelley

About

Raina Kelley is the Editor-in-Chief of VIBE. Kelley oversees the editorial direction and vision of the brand, working closely with its new sister brand Variety.Kelley was most recently the Vice President and Editor-in-Chief of Andscape, a Black media platform dedicated to creating, highlighting, and uplifting the diverse stories of Black identity. She was responsible for the editorial direction, policies, strategy and oversight for projects undertaken by Andscape, a reimagination, expansion and diversification of The Undefeated. Kelley assumed this role in May 2021, after serving as The Undefeated’s managing editor for five years. Before joining The Undefeated, Kelley served as deputy editor at ESPN The Magazine. She was a leading driver of ESPN’s long-form journalism across different platforms (print, digital and audio-visual) and worked closely with some of the company’s preeminent storytellers.Kelley joined ESPN in May 2011 as a senior editor at ESPN The Magazine, responsible for the publication’s coverage of the National Football League, tennis, action sports, the Olympics and ESPN Enterprise Unit. She was a senior editorial leadership team member responsible for successfully merging ESPN’s print and digital content units under one umbrella.Before ESPN, Kelley was a writer for Newsweek. She penned a column on American culture, usually on race, gender, and politics for the magazine, Newsweek.com, and Newsweek/Daily Beast. Kelley joined Newsweek in 2003 as an associate editor and left as a staff writer in 2011. While at Newsweek, she appeared on numerous television programs to discuss her cultural criticism, including the Charlie Rose Show, Good Morning America, The Today Show and CNN’s American Morning.The 2008 Presidential campaign and eventual election of America’s first African American President offered Kelley a unique opportunity to delve into thought-provoking commentary and experiential writing about race in America. At Newsweek, she won several NY NABJ awards for her work on race and culture and was a 2010 Newswomen’s Club of NY Front Page Award winner for her contribution to a Newsweek.com package entitled “The Beauty Advantage.”Kelley is a graduate of Yale University, with a degree in theater arts and started her professional career as a staff member at the Aboutface Theater Company (AFTC).