An Emmy-nominated TV reporter who was fired from KTLA earlier this year has announced that she is the new editor-in-chief of digital content at Los Angeles Magazine.
Ellina Abovian is a popular journalist who worked as an on-air reporter for KTLA from 2015 until February 24, 2026, when she was fired on her 40th birthday.
The single mother of two, who has been divorced since 2024, recounted being blindsided by the corporate restructuring-caused layoff in a March 9 episode of her podcast, Breaking Through.
‘I’m sitting there, and I’m just cocooned in myself because I’m waiting to hear what they’re going to say,’ Abovian said during the episode. ‘As the words are coming out, I’m in shock, I’m in disbelief. I’m just like, “No, this can’t be it.”‘
But Abovian’s fortunes seem to have turned around, as she announced her new role to her 68,000 Instagram followers on Monday in a video post.
‘After taking some much-needed time off and looking at some options, I made the decision that this was the best choice for the evolution of my career, and what I want this next chapter to look like,’ she said in the video.
Abovian noted her shift away from news reporting and said, ‘Now, I get to cover LA in a new way, but still rooted in journalism with more room for culture and lifestyle.’
The new editor-in-chief of digital content at Los Angeles Magazine said that she has loved the publication for decades ‘because it always captured LA in a very smart and stylish way.’
Former KTLA on-air reporter Ellina Abovian recently announced her new role as editor-in-chief of digital content at Los Angeles Magazine. She is pictured in a video announcement she posted on Instagram
Abovian recounted being blindsided when she was fired from KTLA on February 24, 2026, which was her 40th birthday. She is pictured at her 40th birthday celebration
Abovian worked at KTLA for a decade, starting in 2015. She is pictured holding a microphone while on air for the network
Abovian promised to roll out new content with a focus on social media, podcast programming and documentary series, among other initiatives.
‘We’re building something new here at Los Angeles Magazine,’ she said. ‘That reflects the culture, the complexity and the spirit of this city.’
Abovian has already been busy posting videos discussing stories by her publication in the three days since she announced her new role, covering topics ranging from the Los Angeles mayoral race to the files of a deceased investigative journalist going up for sale.
The former KTLA reporter has entered a leadership role at a magazine that has had a great deal of turnover at its masthead in the past few years.
Over Los Angeles Magazine’s 65-year history, the publication has had a total of 12 editors – nine in the first 60 years, and three in the last five.
In December 2022, the magazine was purchased for a reported $6 million by Engine Vision Media, a company founded by prominent defense attorneys Mark Geragos and Ben Meiselas.
Abovian pledged to roll out fresh content and initiatives in her new role and said, ‘we’re building something new here at Los Angeles Magazine’ in her video announcement
At the time, the now-editor-in-chief of the Hollywood Reporter, Maer Roshan, was running Los Angeles Magazine, but he was fired just a few months after the acquisition over editorial differences.
In 2022, current Co-Editor-in-Chief of Rolling Stone Shirley Halperin took the reins of Los Angeles Magazine, but she left about a year later over accusations that the publication failed to pay freelancers and vendors.
Jasmin Rosemberg, who formerly held the role of style and events editor at Variety, has been the editor-in-chief of Los Angeles Magazine since 2023.
