On the five-year anniversary of the Daily Wire, conservative commentator Ben Shapiro is stepping down from his role as editor-in-chief.
Daily Wire CEO Jeremy Boreing told the Blaze on Monday that Shapiro will remain a part-owner of the conservative media outlet and the site’s top talent, but will take on a new role as editor emeritus. John Bickley, who was previously a supervising editor going by the pseudonym “James Barrett” on the site, will fill the role as editor-in-chief.
“John Bickley isn’t just a tremendous editor and writer, he’s a principled conservative and an honest human being. I can’t think of anyone better to take over as EIC, and I look forward to seeing the new, exciting editorial direction of the site,” Shapiro, who hosts the largest conservative podcast in the country, said of Bickley in a statement.
Boreing said Bickley essentially performed the duties of editor-in-chief for the past two years, and the title change formalizes his role at the outlet. In an email, Bickley said he is motivated by the same underlying philosophy as Shapiro: “Facts over feelings.”
“That’s never going to change,” Bickley told the Blaze.
In its five-year lifespan, the conservative outlet has accumulated over 3.85 billion page views and 136,000 subscribers, according to Boreing. Part of the company’s success is because of its social media presence.
“Since inception, the Daily Wire has accumulated over 30 million followers, 3 billion video views, and 180 million hours of video watched across all our platforms,” said Jon Lewis, the website’s executive vice president, to the Blaze.
