Shaping Digital Media for the Future
Edward Felsenthal, F91
An accomplished journalist and Emmy-nominated executive producer, Edward Felsenthal, F91, serves as the executive chairman of TIME. He led the media company as its Chief Executive Officer from 2018 to 2022 and Editor in Chief of the magazine from 2017 until 2023. Under his direction the company expanded its holdings to include franchises, a content studio, a film and TV division, and a sustainability and climate-action platform. He began his career at The Wall Street Journal and founded and supervised successful news and print media sites that went on to win awards and acclaim. He also serves as a Senior Advisor to the Salesforce Office of the CEO.
His interests in history, law, government, and democracy prompted Edward to enroll in Fletcher’s joint degree program with Harvard Law School. As he explored his options, he was not sure he wanted to practice law, yet his fascination with law as a foundation for government, and democracy, as well as with international history, made the MALD program an excellent fit.
As a history enthusiast, Edward remembers his time at Fletcher corresponding with historic moments happening worldwide. There were revolutions, invsions across the world and monumental changes happening in the arc of international history. It provided him with the opportunity to understand these events by engaging with students from diverse political, cultural, and geographic backgrounds. Edward remarks, “Fletcher operates with the idea of bringing people together, preparing them for a world where they need to understand each other and the world beyond their borders.”
He remembers talking to a friend from Panama over coffee in the cafeteria, about the invasion in Panama as it was occurring. “Where else can you have this kind of magical experience where you are discussing history as it happens, with people from that part of the world?” he noted.
The special nature of the Fletcher experience in bringing people together to interact and learn amidst so many crises and chaos makes Edward feel hopeful at a moment “when there are so many crises in the world.” He deeply appreciates the learning that happens outside of the classrooms as well as within them, such as the way that discussions in the Hall of Flags help students develop relationships and understand different perspectives.
Learning to build relationships as a student shaped his work as a journalist and business leader. His connections with journalists who were invited to Fletcher and work with Fletcher’s Journal of Global Affairs and the Murrow Center provided him with valuable knowledge and diplomatic skills for negotiating in newsrooms, building successful media businesses, and navigating the complexity and changing landscape of corporate media.