1. Keep seat vacant.2. Myron Maslowsky, the paper's finance chief. Anonymous@6:34 p.m. says: "He's by far the most qualified person for this post! He is truly a pleasure to work for and actually values everyone that works for him. He is truly one of the few gems left at Gannett."
3. Dave Hunke, CEO of the Detroit Media Partnership. Anonymous@9:05 a.m. says: "Hunke is golden. His paper wins the Pulitzer after bringing off a major switch in publishing operations that is saving big bucks for GCI. The stars are all aligning in his path. So when do we expect Hunke to be crowned as the new Craig Moon? Will it be soon, or after a few months to allow Detroit to settle down?
All Hail Hunke. Vale Hunke."4. Curtis Riddle, publisher of The News Journal in Wilmington, Del., and senior group president of the East Region of papers.
Larry St.Cyr!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteMark Mikolajczyk
ReplyDeleteArnold Garson, Sioux Falls. Fills all the requirements.
ReplyDeleteBuchanan. She certainly understands how to buy circulation and it would finally get her out of Cincinnati.
ReplyDeleteHey 9:43, didn't Arnie move to Louisville a while back?
ReplyDeleteGarson's in Louisville.
ReplyDeleteWard Bushee, who left The Arizona Republic for the San Francisco Chronicle. Presidents Rings galore.
ReplyDeleteHow about Walt Lafferty?
ReplyDeleteThomas E. Dunning
ReplyDeleteVirgil Smith
ReplyDeleteGary L Watson, Let's bring some solid newspaper management back to this company, and I never thought I would wish for his return!
ReplyDeleteBarry Rothfeld, Poughkeepsie.
ReplyDeleteMichael Kane. Take Him!!!!!
ReplyDeleteJim Hopkins.
ReplyDeleteI think Mark Frisby is available.
ReplyDeleteCharlie Nutt
ReplyDeleteDerek Osenenko and I'm not joking.
ReplyDeleteI think Frisby is out unless there's a demand for publishers with experience bankrupting newspapers.
ReplyDeleteOsenenko would be great. Maybe he can throw out all their awards too?
ReplyDeleteLittle premature to talk about the next publisher, from what I hear at the Crystal Towers. Word is that USA Today is coming under the tender care of one Craig Dubow for a while, and that Dubow will personally steer the flagship.
ReplyDeleteDubow is stepping in as needed. An active search for a new publisher is under way.
ReplyDeleteOsenenko would be incredible. But is he done with Gannett?
ReplyDeleteI like the Ward idea...good man. San Francisco Chronicle is going down the tubes and he very experienced with big papers and the company....downside would be the business experience.
ReplyDeleteFrank Vega!
ReplyDeletea leader and a swordsman, in all senses of the term!
Larry Winget!
ReplyDeleteLee Webber would be the right choice. He ran the sales operations for USAT in the Asia. He made Guam one of the most profitable papers in Gannett. And he's doing positive things in Honolulu in order to make it profitable.
ReplyDeleteJeff Webber
ReplyDeleteJeff Webber. A digital business and revenue leader should take the brand forward for the next 10 years. Smart, likable and a long history with the brand. We don't need another local newspaper publisher stepping up and spending two years getting up to speed.
ReplyDeleteCurtis Riddle is the man!
ReplyDeleteDoesn't really matter. The whole place is shot to hell. Morale stinks. Some losses in staff are so detrimental to operations that it will be many years before recovery and healing can even begin. Look at the level of journalism going on there now compared to 5 to 10 years ago and I would think most people would agree that USA TODAY is not what it once was. Too many layoffs, buyouts and push-outs, which I am sure Jim can relate to. Still some good folks around, but they've been pretty beat up, and there simply isn't enough of them left to fight the good fight anymore...not on a national scale. Not in print. Good luck to whomever takes that job. They're going to fight what most likely will be a losing battle. Of course, that's not so bad for them because they'll make a lot of money to be a caretaker of what is surely going to die eventually.
ReplyDeleteNot a Webber fan, although I do agree with the 'smart' and 'likeable' comments. Based on past experience, though, if he can find a way to put four annoying popup ads on a newspaper front page, he'll do it.
ReplyDeleteWalt Lafferty. And when it happens, you will know the end is in sight...
ReplyDeletewell, every would-be auto industry "expert" thinks Steve Jobs could work magic on the auto industry. Let him try his hand at newspapers first, says I.
ReplyDeleteMark Silverman?
ReplyDeleteIf morale is an issue at USAT, then LEE Webber is the ideal candidate. The morale in Honolulu is very high despite cutbacks and the economy. And the paper is one of the few that are producing a profit.
ReplyDeleteCurtis Riddle???? Are you kidding me. That guy couldn't run a hotdog cart!
ReplyDeleteRandy Hammer. AF
ReplyDeleteEveryone listed here are a bunch of bufoons.
ReplyDeleteIf I know this company, they will give it to the biggest idiot in the company.
My vote is for Larry St.Cyr,Frank Vega,Mark Silverman or Dave Hunke. The last three wreaked Detriot so they should get promoted for that.
UHHH....12:33 is a joke right??? HAHAHA!!! Lee Webber running USAT??? HAHAHA!!!! morale is high in Honolulu and they are making a profit??? HAHAHA!!!! They just signed new union contracts that cut pay by 10% and opened their books to union auditors to show they are losing money....oh sure morale is high...you idiot. Even if the stupid shit you said were true how in the world would someone who spent 30 years running the smallest paper in Gannett go to running USAT??? Honolulu is a mess and he will be lucky to survive there long enough to retire.
ReplyDeleteBring back Bob Collins..... April Fool's!
ReplyDeleteKeith Moyer. Former long-time Gannett person. Successful big-city publishing background at Star Tribune in Minneapolis and Bee in Fresno. Strong journalistic background. Former Gannett Editor of the Year. Possible downside, good friend of Moon.
ReplyDelete6:37 - how does Bob Dickey go from Palm Springs to running the entire newspaper division? Morale is good in Hawaii - I work here. Do you???
ReplyDeleteAsk the VPs of Circulation, Advertising, Editorial and the Controller, they will all tell you what an outstanding leader Lee Webber is.
Oh now poor silly koolaid drinker 4:31am....your grouping of the "special people" that proves your Lee is a good leader sorta tells us you are one of those "special" people. Further, your checking in on this long gone thread to see what's been said about the ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS comment that "your precious publisher" should run USAT also says alot of who you may be....especially...since you mention "the controller" instead of the VP...but I believe ya, morale is high...sure it is. Oh, and Dickey to Pres of the division from Palm Springs??? uhhh....hello? Didn't he leave one of the largest papers in the country after several years to move on to Pres? Anyway, Palm Springs is like New York City compared to Guam. Now go back to smoking your papaya...
ReplyDeleteLots of speculation here, but how about someone who knows things. How about Steve Hyatt?
ReplyDeleteCharlie Nutt. Ahhhahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!
ReplyDeleteLets have another Broadcast veteran take over a prominent newspaper...DAVE LOUGEE with rescue USA Today!!!
ReplyDeleteSo Jim, where do you get the idea that one of your two ideas is on the short list? Or are you just trying to stir things up since news is slow? Or are you hiding behind an "anonymous source?"
ReplyDeleteI like the Curtis Riddle scenario. He was one of the first true non-loaner hires at USA TODAY, coming from the Baltimore Sun in early 1982 during the prototype and start-up period. He did a great job as DME in Sports during those crazy early years. Naming a black publisher for the Nation's Newspaper would also bring some added bonus, but I think he would do a good job regardless if he were black or white.
ReplyDeleteBennie Ivory
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
ReplyDelete6:37 - how does Bob Dickey go from Palm Springs to running the entire newspaper division?
Bob Dickey went to corporate from Phoenix. He was in Palm Springs prior to that.
Lee Ann Hamilton.
ReplyDeleteThe company wouldn't have to buy equipment for her: she already has the riding crop and barbed wire.
Jeff WEbber? Ohgod please no. The man has about as much leadership as a cup of coffee.
ReplyDeleteI certainly hope that Dubow keeps his distance. He's fucked up the rest of the company enough. We don't need him bogging down the flagship any more than he already has.
ReplyDeleteHunke has done a good job handling a real pile of s**t. He's the sort of original cost-cutter that would go over well with Corporate, given the requirement of the new pub will be to slash USAT costs to reflect the 30 percent drop in revenues.
ReplyDeleteAmy Pack.....take her away from us PLEASE
ReplyDeleteMaybe Randy Lovely and "his girls" in Phoenix could take over as a group.
ReplyDeleteAs for Ward Bushee, it's possible they could make him an offer he couldn't refuse, but he is a California boy and it took him a long time to get back. Lack of business experience would not discourage Gannett; they put plenty of people with lack of experience in all kinds of jobs. Ward is a Gannettoid and would do what he is told. He may be, as one previous poster said, "a good man", but he is a lousy journalist. Which is just what USAToday would require.
And the Chronicle is sinking faster than the Titanic. Of course, Ward probably could retire, too, if he cashed out his stock options last year when he moved to the Chron...
Jeff Webber would be a disaster. The man would be just as happy selling soap flakes as news. We need an innovator and a believer in content, not someone who pushes pop-up ads.
ReplyDeleteRiddle would be a logical choice for USA TODAY because he's weak and easy to roll over. Dubow, et al don't want anyone who will diagree or fight for what he or she belives in.
ReplyDeleteMary Stier ... qualified woman executive with good new and business acumen.
ReplyDeleteAnother weak roll over type.
ReplyDeleteCo publishers... Larry L. and Ken K.
ReplyDeleteSTEVE HYATT? You mean the HR Manager in Reno? Are you nuts?????
ReplyDeleteI like the Mary Stier idea. Would Bob Dickey have any say in this hire? Are he and Mary close?
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't really want Riddle to leave The News Journal; we seem to really benefit from having a publisher who is in charge of the whole East. That being said, he is never, ever at the office, and he doesn't know any of us in the newsroom, which is probably why so many illogical choices were made during layoffs in December.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
ReplyDelete6:37 - how does Bob Dickey go from Palm Springs to running the entire newspaper division?
Bob Dickey went to corporate from Phoenix. He was in Palm Springs prior to that.
4/17/2009 8:17 AM
Ah,not to forget that he is a friend of old "Sue Clark-Johnson". Why do you think he got the job as head of the newspaper division????? Duuuhhh!
Frank Vega!
ReplyDeletea leader and a swordsman, in all senses of the term!
4/01/2009 1:00 AM
OMG - who made this remark??? Are you high or just drunk????
I believe with Frank Vega we don't need layoffs, furloughs or pay cuts - the employees would be running out of their own free will!!!
As when Gannett or USA TODAY needs another arrogant abusive know nothing.
Gary L Watson, Let's bring some solid newspaper management back to this company, and I never thought I would wish for his return!
ReplyDelete3/31/2009 10:18 PM
I agree with you 100%. At least he was good at sorting out the slackers from the ones doing their job!
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ReplyDeleteJim calls his tallywacker Ward Bushee.
ReplyDeleteif we intend to stay inside the newspaper industry and have gannett ties then the best 5 choices would be:
ReplyDelete1. Mary Stier
2. John Zidich
3. Laura Hollingsworth
4. Michael Kane
5. Mark Adkins
Derek Derek Derek
ReplyDeleteEJ Mitchell would be a good minority choice.
ReplyDeleteChuck Gabrielson - he's done a great great job at Weekend
ReplyDeleteHarry Whipple.
ReplyDeleteMike Jamison
ReplyDeleteI think it is quite comical that every one of these comments (okay, except Henry Whipple) assume that the publisher will be a newspaper person, and from within Gannett. I wouldn't bet on it, on either piece.
ReplyDeleteTo crib an old line from politics, I think anyone who would want this job should be immediately disqualified. Talk about a poisoned position! All you'll get to do is oversee the demolition of a once-great institution. What kind of person wants to do that?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteDoesn't really matter... USAT sold its soul in the last couple of years, putting way too much faith in people who are guided entirely by self interests, and abandoning those who showed real loyalty to company. That's a very difficult thing to recover from and won't be done anytime in the immediate future, regardless of who the publisher is.
ReplyDeleteBottom line is simple - Whoever is hired will be an idiot.
ReplyDeleteBecause that is the choice Gannett always makes. The names mentioned here range from the good to the bad to the ugly... no point in naming names.
The choice will be in the best interests of corp, meaning in the worst interest for the newspaper and journalism in general.
Curtis Riddle is black??
ReplyDeleteI work in Wilmington and have never even seen the man.
Please, please take him!!
This post has not been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteAs opposed to much of today's drivel, it was thought-through, reconsidered, refined and ultimately deleted before being posted.
Bring Don Stinson out of exile...running USAT is like the Cuban Missile Crisis
ReplyDeleteWhoever is chosen will be Martore's decision since she controls the puppet strings, including Dubow's.
ReplyDeleteKen Amos!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteFor the most part, USAT editors and publishers have been figureheads. I expect that will continue with another empty suit appointed soon... and with the state of the flagship in utter decay, I don't foresee any one person, regardless of rank or even ability, being able to turn things around. The web site just doesn't make any money that can sustain the place. The paper was gutted in order to build up that web site. Morale stinks. It's an insane place to work nowadays. Everything it was known for has been dismantled. It's a real shame and any publisher who takes this job will be doing so solely for the paycheck.
ReplyDeleteHey SCJ,
ReplyDeleteDon't you have someone from Reno or your littlr inner circle from AZ to recommend? After all, everyone knows only those who come those two places really know anything about newspapers. The people from there come buzz word loaded....just the way you like it. Cmon...we all know you still call shots from The Lake....
Myron Maslowsky is by far the most qualified person for this post! He is truly a pleasure to work for and actually values everyone that works for him. He is truly one of the few gems left at Gannett.
ReplyDeletePaul Davidson
ReplyDeleteMyron Maslowsky is by far the most qualified person for this post! He is truly a pleasure to work for and actually values everyone that works for him. He is truly one of the few gems left at Gannett.
ReplyDelete4/21/2009 6:34 PM
Give me a break. He may be a nice person but he isn't what USAT needs for a publisher. USAT doesn't need a cost cutter and does need someone with vision. Myron came from internal audit. Those are the people that check to see if you are following the rules. USAT wasn't built on following the rules, it was built on making new rules - like Bill Mahr!
Hey SCJ,
ReplyDeleteDon't you have someone from Reno or your littlr inner circle from AZ to recommend? After all, everyone knows only those who come those two places really know anything about newspapers. The people from there come buzz word loaded....just the way you like it. Cmon...we all know you still call shots from The Lake....
4/21/2009 4:36 PM
You've made my day! Still laughing..................
I don't know why my choice for the new USAT pub is being ignored. The candidate is no one. The vacant post will not be filled anytime soon. Just as the post of USAT editor has not been filled, so the pub seat will be left empty.
ReplyDeleteWhy do I feel this way? Look at the money they save by leaving the seat vacant. They have all these bodies in corporate doing nothing who can oversee USAT, and make the necessary decisions. We have vice presidents who are doing absolutely nothing that could be cashiered into the task.
Perhaps a couple of years from now if the economy recovers in GCI's favor, there will be an opportunity again to gold-plate USAT with an editor and a publisher. But those days are far off, and not until this economy pulls out of the tailspin.
My choice: no one.
If you are serious about your journalism, whether you're a reporter, editor or even publisher, USA TODAY is no longer the place to be. A word to the wise and to job seekers: Avoid it like the plague! Those who know their stuff have been jettisoned or silenced, and the snake-oil, flavor-of-the-day gang has taken over and turned the place into a joke. The only thing that matters anymore at USAT is how things/people are perceived. One manager told me that reality no longer factors into the equation and that I am going to be judged on how friendly I appear, not on my performance, production, ideas or ethics. He flat out said that work ethics in particular don't matter much anymore. This isn't the first manager to speak to me in this manner in the last year. As these managers try to protect their own jobs by putting on a happy face and avoiding the many problems that need to be fixed, they now want the troops to do the same. As a result, everything is deteriorating.
ReplyDeleteSo good luck to the new publisher. He or she will need it with this crew of phonies.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteCurtis Riddle. To the dolt who keeps slamming him, he comes out of his office quite a bit, but like everyone else in the building, he does a beeline every time he sees you walking down the hall!
ReplyDeleteBring back Fred Hamilton who now runs the LA papers for Media News.
ReplyDeleteI bet it will be Curtis. It would be a good way for him to end his career with Gannett. Think he's about 57. Plus it would be politically correct to have a person of color as a publisher in Gannett's eyes.
ReplyDeleteQuestion is: If Curtis takes the position at USA Today will Tom Donavan take his place in the East Coast Group. Tom started in Wilmington and now is the publisher of Ashbury Park.
ReplyDelete9:35 I love it: none of the above. How classic for this company.
ReplyDeleteI've heard Stinson is so happy in "exile" he can hardly stand it.
ReplyDeleteMyron is a much more reasonable person than his position would assume. He's always open to trying new things and figuring out to pay for them. If anything, he's been a voice for change at the otherwise paralyzed USAT.
ReplyDeletePlease! Take EJ Mitchell and Walt Lafferty as a package. Like the Clinton's in the early days, two for the price of one. Although neither are worth a damn.
ReplyDeleteHollis Towns.
ReplyDeleteI think that they should give it to Leslie Hurst!!
ReplyDeleteLOL.
You have all the worthless other gannett heads here, why not add one more.
Bob Collins....he can "drill" down the costs....
ReplyDeleteco-publishers:: Ted and Kathy Power. LOL
ReplyDeleteDave Hunke was in the building last week for about 4 hours or so. Saw him come in the building and leave late in the day.
ReplyDeleteHenry Freeman is the guy.
ReplyDeleteIt just dawned on me...Susan Lavington.
ReplyDeleteThis just came across my email in Detroit-
ReplyDeleteNews Release
h
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Gannett names David Hunke president, publisher of USA TODAY
John Hillkirk named editor of USA TODAY
McLEAN, VA –David Hunke today was named president and publisher of USA TODAY. Hunke currently is chief executive officer of the Detroit Media Partnership and publisher of the Detroit Free Press.
The announcement was made by Craig Dubow, Gannett chairman, president and chief executive officer, at the company’s Annual Shareholders Meeting here.
“Dave is a highly talented, multi-faceted leader, who drives excellence throughout his organization while making the tough business decisions. At the same time, he has the courage to be innovative and take chances. He is just the right person for USA TODAY at this juncture,” said Dubow. “I am thrilled he will be joining my executive team.”
Hunke headed the team that this month won the Pulitzer Prize for local reporting. He also led the Detroit Media Partnership through a ground-breaking transformation earlier this year which changed the way the two newspapers in the city are produced and delivered.
Also today, Hunke named John Hillkirk editor of USA TODAY. Hillkirk currently is executive editor of the newspaper.
Said Hunke: “John has taken on every challenge USA TODAY has thrown at him and not only succeeded, but did it with calm assurance and creativity. He is a top-notch journalist with great instincts who also understands and can articulate the future of the industry. Together, John and I can make a real difference at the nation’s newspaper.”
Hunke succeeds Craig Moon, who retired on April 17. Hillkirk succeeds Ken Paulson, who left in February.
USA TODAY is the flagship newspaper and Web site of Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) with a daily readership circulation of more than 3.5 million people and monthly unique visitors of more than 11.5 million.
Biographies
David Hunke has been CEO of the Detroit Media Partnership and publisher of the Detroit Free Press since 2005. Prior to that, he was president and publisher of the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle from 1999 to 2005 and vice president of Advertising for the Cincinnati Enquirer from 1992-1999.
He began his journalism career in 1974 in advertising sales at the Kansas City Star. He held various sales positions beginning in 1977 with the Knight-Ridder company, including advertising director of The Miami Herald. He is a graduate of the University of Kansas with a BS in journalism.
John Hillkirk has been an editor and reporter at USA TODAY since the newspaper launched in 1982. He was named executive editor in 2004 after serving nine years as managing editor of the newspaper’s Money section. Prior to joining USA TODAY, he was a business reporter at the Times-Union in Rochester and the Valley Dispatch in Tarentum, PA.
He is the co-author of three books: “Xerox: American Samurai”; “Grots Guts and Genius”; and “A Better Idea: Redefining the Way Americans Work.” He is a graduate of Allegheny College in Meadville, PA.
About Gannett
Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is an international news and information company operating on multiple platforms including the Internet, mobile, newspapers, magazines and TV stations. Gannett is an Internet leader with hundreds of newspaper and TV Web sites; CareerBuilder.com, the nation’s top employment site; USATODAY.com; and more than 80 local MomsLikeMe.com sites. Gannett publishes 85 daily U.S. newspapers, including USA TODAY, the nation’s largest-selling daily newspaper, and more than 850 magazines and other non-dailies including USA WEEKEND. Gannett also operates 23 television stations in 19 U.S. markets. Gannett subsidiary Newsquest is the United Kingdom’s second largest regional newspaper company with 17 daily paid-for titles, more than 200 weekly newspapers, magazines and trade publications, and a network of Web sites.
For media inquiries contact:
Tara Connell
703-854-6049
tjconnel@gannett.com