Heather Allan, who spent 30 years at NBC News, has been named senior vice president of news gathering for Al Jazeera America. Allan has spent the last six years as head of global news gathering for Qatar-based Al Jazeera English.
AJAM’s current news gathering head, Amir Ahmed has been named svp of news planning. “Amir and Heather are strong leaders whom we’re pleased to have join the newsroom as we continue to advance AJAM’s mission to deliver the highest quality, in-depth journalism to more audiences and through multiple platforms,” said Amjad Atallah, AJAM’s evp of content.
Allan played a key role in launching AJAM in 2013. With Al Jazeera English, she managed global news coverage across 34 bureaus. With NBC News, Allan held positions across many of NBC’s bureaus, lastly as bureau chief in Los Angeles.
The job Allan is taking on was previously held by Marcy McGinnis who resigned in May following a leadership shake-up as a result of a lawsuit filed by a former AJAM employee.