From a story on variety.com by Todd Spangler headlined “People Magazine Names Liz Vaccariello Editor in Chief, Replacing Dan Wakeford”:

People has a new top editor: Liz Vaccariello, formerly editor in chief of Real Simple magazine, is taking over the reins of the entertainment and human interest title.

Vaccariello takes over for Dan Wakeford, who is leaving after three years as People’s EIC. Wakeford didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The change at the top of People’s masthead comes after Meredith’s magazine group was acquired by IAC’s Dotdash in a $2.7 billion deal. Earlier this month, the newly merged Dotdash Meredith shuttered print editions of six magazines, including InStyle and EW, and laid off about 200 employees.

From a New York Times story by Brooks Barnes headlined “People Magazine’s Premature Cover Toasts Betty White’s 100th Birthday”:

For months, editors at People magazine had been zeroing in on Betty White for an end-of-year cover article. Her 100th birthday was coming up on Jan. 17, and readers always seemed to warm to her self-deprecating, slightly naughty observations. As the toast of social media in recent years, Ms. White appealed to old and young.

By mid-December, Liz McNeil, a 29-year-veteran of the magazine, and a new colleague, Dory Jackson, were collaborating on the piece, with Ms. White responding to questions via email….On Dec. 23, editors closed the issue. It hit newsstands on Wednesday and began arriving in subscriber mailboxes on Friday.