Anna Wintour steps down as editor of US Vogue after nearly 40 years

Published June 26, 2025
US Vogue Editor in Chief Anna Wintour attends New York Fashion Week in February 2013. — Reuters/File
US Vogue Editor in Chief Anna Wintour attends New York Fashion Week in February 2013. — Reuters/File

Magazine legend Anna Wintour is stepping down as editor of fashion bible US Vogue after 37 years in the post, US media reported on Thursday.

British-born Wintour, 75, has been one of the most influential and formidable figures in fashion and magazine journalism for decades, famous for her ever-present sunglasses and unchanging bob haircut.

She was widely seen as the inspiration behind The Devil Wears Prada, a hit 2003 novel and 2006 movie, in which the role of a tyrannical magazine editor was played by Meryl Streep.

Wintour, who took the helm at US Vogue in 1988, announced her departure at a staff meeting, but she will stay on as group owner Conde Nast’s global chief content officer and as editorial director at Vogue, People magazine reported.

Several other publications also reported this news.

Wintour, who held the title of Vogue’s editor-in-chief, was made a British dame in 2017 and in February this year was made a companion of honour, joining a select group never numbering more than 65 recognised for major contributions in their field.

At the ceremony in London in February, she removed her trademark sunglasses to receive the award and said she had told King Charles III that she had no plans to stop working.

Wintour, who was raised in the UK by a British father and an American mother, is described by many as the single most powerful person in the global fashion industry.

Her choice of covers for the monthly magazine was seen as authoritative in the publication’s heyday, and she was renowned for her strict control over content, sometimes axing work without discussion.

A 2015 documentary about her life pointed to her ice queen image and steely ambition, but also revealed her warmer side.

Opinion

Editorial

Limiting the damage
Updated 07 Mar, 2026

Limiting the damage

WITH looming energy shortages due to the US-Israel war on Iran, the government has revived a range of Covid-era...
Diplomatic option
07 Mar, 2026

Diplomatic option

WITH Operation Ghazab lil Haq underway for over a week now, Pakistan has demonstrated that it can take firm action...
Polio, again
07 Mar, 2026

Polio, again

ANOTHER child has fallen victim to polio, this time in Sindh. The National Institute of Health this week confirmed...
On unstable ground
Updated 06 Mar, 2026

On unstable ground

PAKISTAN’S economic managers repeatedly tout improvements in macroeconomic indicators, including rising foreign...
Divide et impera
06 Mar, 2026

Divide et impera

AS if the high loss of life in Iran, regional escalation and economic turbulence caused by the US-Israeli aggression...
New approach needed
06 Mar, 2026

New approach needed

WITH one World Cup campaign ending in despair, Pakistan began to plan for the start of the cycle of another by...