Proctor named executive editor at Richmond

Former Beacon Journal stalwart Glenn Proctor, an associate editor of The Star-Ledger in Newark, N.J., was named executive editor of The Times-Dispatch October 6.

Proctor, a Marine Corps veteran who served in Vietnam, has spent more than 35 years in the news business, the past 10 at The Star-Ledger, where he was an associate editor, assistant managing editor and city editor.

He also served as an editor at daily newspapers in Rochester, N.Y., and Louisville, Ky. He worked as an editor and reporter for papers in Akron, Ohio, and Davenport, Iowa, and as a reporter for United Press International. He started his career as a reporter in West Chester, Pa.

Proctor worked briefly as a congressional press secretary and taught journalism for several years at Kent State University in Ohio.

Proctor succeeds William H. Millsaps Jr., who retired in July after 39 years at The T-D, including more than 11 as executive editor.

Publisher Thomas A. Silvestri said Proctor is "a firebrand on behalf of excellence in journalism. He is passionate about our craft. He is a mentor. He is a recruiter."

Proctor, 59, begins work Nov. 14, but he told staff members he will be spending time in the newsroom before his official start.

"This is a good newspaper that can be better. That's where we're going," Proctor said as he introduced himself to the news staff.

Proctor has some Richmond ties. Proctor's wife, Terri, was living here when he met her more than a dozen years ago. She was working as a legislative aide to Gov. L. Douglas Wilder.

The Times-Dispatch’s Point of View column by Michael Paul Williams was devoted to Proctor’s hiring as the first African-American to hold the job.

“You hear "Times-Disgrace" snarled at you enough as a young reporter and you come to appreciate the problematic history between this newspaper and Richmond's black community,” Williams wrote.

Proctor acknowledged that he is breaking new ground at The T-D.

"It's a great honor to be the first African-American" to head the paper's newsroom, Proctor said.

"I'm very humbled. But this is not about my facial complexion. . . . It's a great, great opportunity. We'll have a better T-D with our team. Not me. Our team."

To read the complete article from the Oct 6 Times-Dispatch click on the headline above.

To read the Williams column click here.