Tumblr snags Andrew McLaughlin, former White House staffer

Tumblr has hired former White House technology expert Andrew McLaughlin to join its team in New York.

McLaughlin will assume the role of vice president, leading Tumblr's internationalization and community operations. McLaughlin brings to Tumblr some key Washington experience, most notably serving as the administration's deputy chief technology officer from 2009 to 2010. Before that, he headed up global public policy work for Google from 2004 to 2009. Until now, Tumblr has largely flown under the Beltway radar. The company is taking a more active role in policy matters given recent attempts on Capitol Hill to crack down on content peddled illegally online. After leaving the White House, McLaughlin began teaching at Stanford Law School, took a position on the board of directors for Code for America and started Civic Commons. The latter is a nonprofit that "helps governments build and use shared and open technologies to improve public services, transparency, accountability, citizen participation and management effectiveness, all while saving money," according to its website.