John Lasiter joined Out & About Newspaper's sales team this month.
"I'm looking forward to working for Tennessee’s GLBT community through a publication I truly believe in," Lasiter said.
A native of Modesto, Cali., Lasiter moved to Nashville in 2003 and pursued acting, eventually joining Nashville Stages with now-partner Kaine Riggan in 2005. In 2009, the couple moved to Los Angeles to continue acting and Lasiter landed parts on shows including "How I Met Your Mother," "Dexter," and "Big Love." After about a year, he followed his heart back to Nashville and says he's glad to be home.
"I've been in a lot of cities, but Nashville always feels like home," Lasiter said. "It's the city that I love."
Handing over the reigns
On the other side of the newsroom, the upcoming April issue will be the last under the direction of Managing Editor and Creative Director Joey Leslie.
"My past 2 1/2 years with O&AN have been a phenomenal run with a close-knit staff producing a great product in a city that simply must have a voice for the GLBT community," Leslie said. "It's time for me to entertain other options and hand the reigns over to a tenacious new editor and I'm happy to say we already have several highly-qualified candidates for the position."
Leslie, a 2007 graduate of Western Kentucky University's School of Journalism and Broadcasting, began his career with O&AN as sales manager in September 2007 and was named managing editor in June 2008.
"Joey's tenure with O&AN has helped foster growth and taken the paper in a positive direction," said O&AN Owner and Publisher Jerry Jones. "It's been an absolute pleasure working with him and together we're aiming for a seamless transition in early April."
Leslie said he expects to see the paper continue to grow in the coming months and intends to remain a contributor to the publication.
"I'm confident that with an invigorated sales team and a great slate of candidates in the running for the editor's seat, the sky's the limit for the future of O&AN," he said.