| Rachel Whetstone | |
| Birth Date: | 22 February 1968 |
| Birth Place: | Kensington, London, England |
| Alma Mater: | University of Bristol |
| Occupation: | Public relations executive |
| Party: | Conservative |
| Children: | 2 |
| Mother: | Linda Whetstone |
| Relatives: | Antony Fisher (grandfather) |
Rachel Marjorie Joan Whetstone (born 22 February 1968)[1] [2] is a British public relations executive. Whetstone was in charge of communications and public policy at Google for nearly a decade, and served as senior vice president of communications and public policy for Uber until April 2017. She then joined Facebook as vice president of communications of its WhatsApp, Instagram, and Messenger products.[3] Since August 2018, Whetstone has been the chief communications officer (CCO) of Netflix.[4]
In February 2013, Whetstone was named one of the 100 most powerful women in the United Kingdom by Woman's Hour on BBC Radio 4.[5] She has been featured on PRWeeks Power List several times, most recently in 2016 at number 14.[6]
Whetstone's maternal grandfather was Antony Fisher, founder of several libertarian think tanks, including the Institute of Economic Affairs and the Atlas Economic Research Foundation (now known as Atlas Network).[7] [8] Her mother was Linda Whetstone, who worked with Fisher's think tanks.[9]
Raised in East Sussex, Whetstone attended Benenden School and then read history at the University of Bristol.[10]
Upon graduation, Whetstone joined Conservative Central Office, advising then-Home Secretary Michael Howard.[10] She subsequently entered the private sector, working for T-Mobile UK and Portland Communications, before returning to Westminster in 2003 as Political Secretary to Howard when he became Conservative Party leader.[11] [12]
When Howard stood down following the general election in 2005, she returned to the private sector, joining Google in London before moving to California to lead the search engine's public policy and public relations teams.[13]
In June 2015, Whetstone became senior vice president of policy and communications at Uber, replacing David Plouffe, who was promoted to chief adviser to the company.[14] In April 2017, it was announced that Whetstone would be leaving Uber.[15] She was replaced by Jill Hazelbaker, who had been Whetstone's deputy.[16] [17]
Recode reported in July 2017 that Whetstone would be joining Facebook in September as vice president of communications for WhatsApp, Instagram, and Messenger. The newly created role reported to Facebook's vice president of global communications, Caryn Marooney.[18]
In August 2018, Whetstone joined Netflix to run public relations:
Whetstone is married to Steve Hilton, a British-American political commentator.[19] The couple lives in Atherton, California.[20] In 2022, Whetstone opposed a plan to loosen the town's zoning code (which only allows one house per acre) and permit multi-family housing.[21]