Sarah Jane Weaver, the Church News executive editor, has been named the new editor of the Deseret News.
The announcement was made during a staff meeting at the Triad Center in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, May 21, by Sheri Dew, executive vice president and chief content officer of Deseret Management Corp., the parent company of the Deseret News. The Church News is jointly published by the Deseret News and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Weaver, who has been editor of the Church News since 2017, becomes the first female editor of the Deseret News since its founding in June 1850.
Jon Ryan Jensen, editor of Church News, will assume day-to-day leadership of the print and website publication. With this new appointment, Weaver will step away as host of the Church News podcast and as a regular columnist. She will, however, retain some administrative responsibilities, and Church News will continue to report to her.
Over the past seven years, Weaver has expanded Church News’ reach and influence to Latter-day Saints more than tenfold. She began translation of its content into Spanish and Portuguese, established a video team, and led podcasting efforts.
“Sarah has been part of our executive leadership teams for years and has a seasoned understanding of what it takes to be a strong journalist in today’s fractured media landscape,” Dew said. “She has also shown a great ability to create successful media products. We’re excited to have her expertise focused on the Deseret News.”
Jensen said Weaver has been “the perfect steward of Church News during a dynamic time in the Church’s history. As editor, her leadership and inspired direction helped Church News grow in unprecedented ways. I am grateful for her influence on Church News that started in 1995 when she first started working here. And I am excited to see where she takes the Deseret News in her new role there.”
Weaver was hired as a reporter for the Church News in 1995 and has traveled the world covering, among other things, the Church’s welfare services, Church education and social issues impacting Latter-day Saints, and, most recently, President Russell M. Nelson’s worldwide ministries.
“It’s been a joy in my life to create a living record of the Restoration and to learn from faithful Latter-day Saints across the globe,” Weaver said.
She also expressed confidence both in the leadership and future of the Church News. “Ryan is a gifted leader with broad experience with messaging to a Latter-day Saint audience, and I have the greatest confidence that under his daily supervision the Church News will continue to grow and flourish,” she said.
Jensen has worked with the Church since 2014, including four years as the managing editor of the New Era magazine and Church youth website. Jensen has a degree in journalism from Utah State University and is fluent in Spanish. He joined the Church News team in 2021 as the director of audience and product development.
“Church News continues to have a dedicated staff that will create a living record of the Restoration by sharing the words of prophets and apostles and other Church leaders to help build faith in Jesus Christ and help prepare the world for His Second Coming. That is a responsibility we take seriously and pursue prayerfully each day,” Jensen said.
The Deseret News is one of several media properties operated by the Deseret Management Corp., which is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In addition to the Church News, the Deseret News also publishes a weekly edition (delivered by mail) and Deseret Magazine. The Deseret News also operates a robust website at deseret.com that now has millions of unique readers monthly.
Weaver replaces Hal Boyd, who earlier this month accepted a position as chief of staff at Brigham Young University.
