A new hire for the growing outdoor lifestyle brand MeatEater, Inc. should feel right at home.
MeatEater, Inc., the blossoming outdoor brand and media company founded by Steven Rinella, has announced the hiring of Anthony Licata as the new Editor-in-Chief.
Licata has more than 20 years experience in the outdoor media landscape, and is a two-time winner of the ASME National Magazine Award.
Prior to joining MeatEater, Licata held editorial director positions within the Bonnier Lifestyle Group, overseeing print and digital content for Field & Stream, Outdoor Life, Saveur, and Popular Science. He served ten years as editor-in-chief a Field & Stream.
"Anthony is one of the most respected leaders in the outdoor media," said Rinella. "I have long admired him as a writer and editor, and am thrilled he's joining the MeatEater team. It is our goal to produce the most engaging content in what we call 'HFCC'—hunt, fish, conservation, culinary—and there is literally no better partner to help us achieve this ambition than Anthony."
The hunting and fishing world had hinged on magazine publishing for generations, but with the onset of digital and online media, began a huge shift in the mid-2000s. Long known as a leader in the publishing space, Field & Stream Magazine has been viewed as the epitome of the outdoor lifestyle.
With that shift into the digital space, corporations like Bonnier saw a renewed methodology in the way they went about attracting and sustaining readers and followers.
Unfortunately, invigorated gun right restriction and anti-hunting sentiment came along with that shift, and traditional outdoor-oriented media groups saw a negative reaction to some of the values and customs they wrote about, reported on, and held dear. Writing to a universal group required much more thought and care, and to discuss big game hunting in the United States became a defensive situation for some.
MeatEater, along with the front-facing hunting show (now on Netflix) and the supplementary website, podcast, and other media formats, has embraced the idea of the double conversation. Rinella and company are mastering the technique of speaking to the experienced and the non-experienced when it comes to hunting, fishing, and shooting knowledge.
If you're going to get anywhere in the outdoor industry these days, you've got to be on multiple platforms, and you've got to bring more to the table than has ever been brought before.
Rinella and the wider MeatEater team know this, and Licata's hiring falls nicely into place. As outdoor writers and editors continue to adapt, they're moving closer to a renewed sense of the North American hunting and fishing ideals.
"Since our company launch last fall, we've seen tremendous gains in website traffic, podcast downloads, social media followers, and revenue," said Kevin Sloan, MeatEater CEO. "We're excited to see how MeatEater's content will continue to thrive and expand under Anthony's stewardship."
The dedicated backcountry hunters and fishermen who've grown to love MeatEater should see even more relevant, experienced content creation and organization now that Licata is on the team. Additionally, the outdoor-curious will likely find even more reasons to be intrigued, and ideally be encouraged to get outside and develop their own experience.
That's a big part of what makes MeatEater such a successful brand, and what should keep them on the outdoor media reading radar.
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