Lora Victorio promoted, Beto Alvarez and Ben Brazil join the News Desk
The following announcement was sent on behalf of Deputy Managing Editor Shelby Grad:
I’m pleased to announce leadership changes and new staff for the News Desk, which runs the homepage, mobile, apps and other Los Angeles Times digital platforms.
Lora Victorio has been promoted to News Desk editor, overseeing the department. Victorio is a Times veteran who brings strong news judgment, innovative ideas and a collaborative approach to the job. She has been at the center of so much of our most important journalism, from elections and wildfires to Jan. 6 and Hollywood award shows. She has also helped launch many special projects, including award-winning investigations, podcasts and reader service innovations.
Victorio joined The Times in 2006 to help launch The Envelope online. In 2011, she moved to the News Desk to help oversee the homepage. She became acting News Desk editor in 2020 and set out to improve communication across departments, create a pipeline for tackling digital projects and help such initiatives as “The Times” podcast and the United States of California series. She also oversaw the digitization of a series about the Latino community that won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984, giving new life to these important stories. More recently, she has spearheaded successful design changes to the homepage.
Before The Times, Victorio worked as an editor at the Hollywood Reporter and as a writer for ABC News, where she was part of a team that won a Peabody Award for its coverage of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Beto Alvarez has joined The Times as deputy editor of the News Desk after a successful run overseeing digital operations for the San Diego Union-Tribune.
He most recently served as digital creative director for photo, video, audio and graphics at our sister paper, where he had worked since 2010. He also served as the website administrator and oversaw digital design and publishing for www.sandiegouniontribune.com.
Alvarez has worked in journalism for more than 25 years. He began his career at the Dallas Morning News, where he worked as a graphic artist and illustrator. He then spent eight years at the Philadelphia Inquirer as a graphic artist, illustrator and designer. Throughout his career, Alvarez has been recognized with numerous awards from the Society of News Design, Society of Professional Journalists, Print magazine and Malofiej Awards for Infographics. He’s also the recipient of four regional Emmy Awards.
He will work closely with the other two deputy editors, Dan Watson and Henry Chu.
Lastly, Benjamin Brazil has joined the News Desk as a multiplatform editor.
Brazil works with the night and weekend crew, helping with breaking news and special projects. As a homepage editor, he helps to coordinate news coverage and elevate our signature storytelling.
He first joined the newspaper in 2016 as a reporter for the Daily Pilot before moving on to work as a feature writer for TimesOC and co-writing the TimesOC newsletter. Brazil earned his bachelor’s degree in anthropology at UC Berkeley. He started July 13.
