Beacon Journal business writer
The Akron Beacon Journal has its first female publisher in its 168-year history.
Edward Moss, named publisher last August shortly after the Beacon Journal was bought by Black Press Ltd., unexpectedly resigned Thursday to accept what he said is an ``unsolicited business opportunity.''
Andrea Mathewson, vice president of production at the Beacon Journal and a 29-year veteran of the paper, was promoted to publisher effective immediately.
``A few minutes ago I met with the senior managers at our company and informed them that I have made a very difficult decision to leave the Beacon Journal,'' Moss wrote in an e-mail to the staff shortly after 2 p.m. ``An unsolicited business opportunity has come my way that I simply could not turn down.''
Moss did not say where he is going or whether he is leaving Akron. Today is his last day at the newspaper.
Alton Brown, head of advertising, was named executive vice president and general manager, responsible for driving all advertising sales and marketing for the paper, Black Press said in a news release.
The new publisher appointment follows the naming on May 25 of newsroom veteran Bruce Winges as editor and vice president of the paper.
Winges, who has been at the Beacon Journal 25 years, succeeded Mizell Stewart III, who as managing editor had been the highest-ranking newsroom executive. Stewart was named editor of the Evansville (Ind.) Courier & Press.
Mathewson, a lifelong Akron resident, oversaw all aspects of printing and packaging of the paper, plus was in charge of facilities, transportation and building management. She held previous positions in advertising, legal, printing, purchasing and overall operations.
``I am excited to come into this position and build off the great progress that we have made this year in positioning the company for long-term success,'' Mathewson said in a statement. ``Our focus will be to continue our emphasis on more local news as well as strong ties to the communities we serve.''
Moss came to the Beacon Journal from an executive position with Media General in Richmond, Va. He succeeded James N. Crutchfield who had become publisher in 2001.
David Black, owner of Black Press Ltd., said Moss, a former newspaper publisher, had a reputation for improving finances.
In Moss' 10-month tenure at the Beacon Journal, the paper has tried to stem declining revenues by cutting 134 jobs, going from 734 to 600 employees, including downsizing the newsroom by 25 percent. The company also began new initiatives to attract readers and smaller advertisers, while repackaging news coverage for the paper's five-county circulation area.
``There is no doubt that we are going through a transition period that has seen newspaper readership decline, newspaper revenues and profits fall,'' Moss said in an address May 17 before the Akron Roundtable.
Moss told the Roundtable audience that since he came to the paper, he believed the Beacon Journal was a better, more nimble company that is positioned to be successful for years.
[posted on Ohio.com Thursday afternoon]
4 comments:
The new publisher won a Knight Ridder general excellence award in 2006.The citation said:
Andrea Mathewson is a detail person -- but she never loses sight of the big picture. As production director at the Akron Beacon Journal, she oversees a division that performs at the top of its game. It earned two first-place print awards in 2004, one within Knight Ridder, the other from an industry group. Earlier this year, the department celebrated 24 months without any downtime.
During the same period, the newspaper switched ink vendors, converted to lighter-weight newsprint and added a second inserter operation. Mathewson's ability to carry out big changes without disrupting the day-to-day performance is exemplary.
She's sought after for projects that require coordination between departments; she's currently in charge of implementing sub-ZIP zoning, a valuable enhancement for advertisers, but one that requires new procedures in production and circulation, as well.
"She shows day-to-day excellence in the way she approaches her job," the jury said. "She's a wonderful teambuilder. She shows great ability in ways that extend beyond what could be a very narrow functional area."
Well, the mustachioed one sure was worthless. Another nail in the coffin for a paper that still hasn't figured out how to be innovative or original.
Terry Pluto and Bob Dyer aren't going to be there forever, ABJ bigwigs.
"another nail in the coffin." Hey, that's real original. Hope that wasn't from one of our highly compensated writers and editors.
Production director?
She switched ink vendors and newsprint ?
This is what it takes to be a great candidate for publisher these days ?
Who's running the BJ now, FEMA?
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