Jenni Mortimer, Lifestyle and Travel Editor (audience) for New Zealand's Herald, is passionate about telling stories and providing a place to escape for kiwis in amongst the hard news.

If you asked me at the age of 20 what my dream job would be, I would have said somewhat haphazardly – this exact job. I live and breathe our lifestyle, entertainment and travel content and am passionate about telling stories and providing a place to escape for kiwis in amongst the hard news. In 2017, I started with the Herald as a lifestyle producer, then became the deputy editor, then editor of lifestyle - shortly followed by taking over the entertainment section. Then came travel in 2023 and the shift of my brilliant team's focus to audience and serving those in front of the paywall. The trio of roles isn't without chaos – enter Will Smith at the Oscars – but there’s nothing else I would rather be doing. For me, the greatest challenge with being a journalist is earning the trust of your reader. I am passionate about creating an environment where our audience can go and be both informed and refreshed. I want our content to be engaging, purposeful and curated to those who mean the most – our readers. Outside of being a journalist, I’m also a mother and playing a small part in raising the next generation influences the decisions I make as an editor. Knowing that the choices I make as an editor, and the stories I tell as a journalist can create change, challenge inequality and promote empathy makes the juggle of it all worth it.