Digiday promotes Max Willens to senior editor research and features and Kayleigh Barber to senior reporter

As Digiday continues to closely chronicle the modernization of the media and marketing industries, and looks to the evolution of our coverage, we’ll count on two current staffers to be a key part of that journey.
“Max Willens and Kayleigh Barber have both been integral to our editorial output through honest coverage, in-depth reports into valuable trends and insights into the opportunities and challenges industry execs are facing,” said Digiday editor-in-chief Jim Cooper. “We look forward to the ways they’ll continue to grow in their elevated roles — in the areas of research and features for Max and long-form reporting, special editorial projects and podcast hosting for Kayleigh here at Digiday.”
Max Willens @maxwillens has been promoted to senior editor, research and features. Previously a senior reporter at Digiday, Max has been covering media companies’ evolving revenue and distribution strategies. In his new role he will oversee the build out of our research capabilities that will contextualize our reporting and help guide our feature coverage.
Prior to joining Digiday, his writing had appeared in Wired, Newsweek, Ad Age, Crain’s New York Business and Vice. He is a proud graduate of the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. He is based in Philadelphia.
Kayleigh Barber @KayleighJBarber has been promoted to senior reporter. Kayleigh joined Digiday as a media reporter in 2019 and has covered revenue diversification within the digital media industry, including shifts into e-commerce, licensing, virtual events, membership and more. In her new role she will continue to focus on those same sectors, but also expand to focus on the future of work, diversity and inclusion and other large industry trends. She will also focus on editorial projects ranging from topical guides to podcasting. She will cohost the Digiday podcast with senior media editor Tim Peterson.
She joined Digiday from Folio where she reported on a similar beat and helped produce various events and award shows. Before starting out in her career in journalism, she was a journalism and English student at Penn State University. Kayleigh is based in New York.
More in Announcement

ButcherBox, Macmillan Publishers and Hopper are among the 2025 Future Leader Awards winners
The Future Leader Awards, presented by Digiday, Glossy, Modern Retail and WorkLife, honor the next generation of leaders leaving their mark in their industry, with 10 years of experience or less. The winners demonstrated an ability to innovate and execute creative strategies that push their respective companies forward. They also have strong leadership qualities that […]

T Brand Studio, Dagne Dover and ShopMy are shortlisted for the 2025 Future Leader Awards
The Future Leader Awards, presented by Digiday, Glossy, Modern Retail and WorkLife, recognize the next generation of leaders making a big impact in their industry, with 10 years of experience or less. This year’s finalists stand out for their bold innovation, measurable impact and deep connection to the audiences they serve. Each has harnessed data […]

BBC Studios, NBCUniversal and Genius are 2025 Digiday Media Awards winners
This year’s Digiday Media Awards winners celebrate the power of partnerships and emerging technologies. Across the 2025 winners, themes include a continued embrace of short-form video, a rise in interactive storytelling through formats like VR and AR, and a focus on collaboration to drive engagement and innovation. BBC Studios’ StoryWorks and Brand USA took home […]