Two insiders are said to be in the running to land the InStyle editorial director job: People Stylewatch Editor Lisa Arbetter and Jane Pratt, the editor of the Time-owned sites xoJane and xoVain the publisher acquired from Say Media last year.
The editorial director of InStyle oversees the magazines and the Web sites.
The opening was created on Tuesday when Ariel Foxman, who held the top job for eight years, resigned — a move that stunned many fashionistas.
One well-placed source said Arbetter is the leading candidate. “I’d say Lisa is a shoo-in,” the insider whispered.
But other Time-sters pointed out that the publisher has announced only that it will name an interim editor shortly.
Pratt has a higher profile, but Time traditionally has less personality-driven editors in charge of its titles than, say, Condé Nast or Hearst.
Before editing the eponymous site, Pratt, 53, was the founding editor of late ’80s, early ’90s sensation, Sassy. The editor then edited Jane, the Condé Nast title aimed at millennials. That magazine folded after she was forced out.
Pratt then hooked up with Say Media when it was still spending its $100 million in venture funding to recast itself as a digital media company. Pratt’s sites were among the last to go in the selloff when Say Media shifted gears.
Arbetter took over Stylewatch in March 2015, making it younger and more shopping-focused. Founder and longtime editor Susan Kaufman was bounced that January.
Foxman leaves Aug. 4. An interim editor will be named after.



