The CEO (left) of the Gannett-controlled Detroit newspapers succeeds Craig Moon, who retired April 17 after six years as publisher of the company's flagship, GCI just announced. Dave Hunke's promotion had been rumored for weeks; he has been chief executive of the Detroit Media Partnership since 2005. Also, Corporate formally elevated John Hillkirk to the position of editor, replacing Ken Paulson.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Urgent: Detroit's Hunke named USAT publisher
The CEO (left) of the Gannett-controlled Detroit newspapers succeeds Craig Moon, who retired April 17 after six years as publisher of the company's flagship, GCI just announced. Dave Hunke's promotion had been rumored for weeks; he has been chief executive of the Detroit Media Partnership since 2005. Also, Corporate formally elevated John Hillkirk to the position of editor, replacing Ken Paulson.
32 comments:
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ReplyDeleteA SMART move!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteOld news. Written here last week.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteHunke choice was inspired. I can't wait to see how he puts his brand on USAT.
ReplyDeleteMy guess this means that fixing USAT has become the No. 1 priority for corporate. They wouldn't take Hunke away from Detroit so soon, if the problems with USAT were not as severe as they are. So much for those who said the Marriott withdrawal from the hotel program was a small matter.
ReplyDeleteDave Hunke is a wonderful choice for the top job at USATODAY.
ReplyDeleteI have had the pleasure of working with Dave in Cincinnati. He is a real straight shooter and a reliable person.
I hope they bring Mark Silverman back to Detroit to replace Hunke.
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ReplyDeleteSo we're still not getting rid of the strong influence of Craig Moon or Frankie Vega. Those three go way back and are all joined at the hips. You know Neuharth drove this one down Dubow's throat.
ReplyDeleteThat's an unfair (and unsupported) criticism against John. Let's see what he does. USA TODAY needs major change.
ReplyDelete1:02 You're WAY off base.
ReplyDeleteRe: 12:34
ReplyDeleteAgree completely! Dave is someone who drives excellence and creativity. Worked for him a couple of times, loved it!
Good grief...the Good OlD Boy Network strikes again. This is such a lame, safe choice. And the G-Co wants to be innovative? Haha..what a joke.
ReplyDeleteObviously CB and GM are not at all serious about changing how this company operates. Same ol same ol.
What they continue to do is roll up re-treads. Of course, looking outside of the company would be waaay too risky for the G-11 crew.
Perhaps hiring someone to bring in new ideas of how to implement a serious innovation strategy with USAT is just too much for CB to handle. G-11 talks a good game about innovation and being different and creating a world-class digital business and bla bla bla...but when it's time to hire people to execute that promise, G-11 fails miserably.
Just look around. There are re-treads bumped up to execs position everywhere. That's how the game works. Work with the company for a few years and you'll get re-treaded to the top somewhere. The longer G-Co promotes NEWSPAPER PEOPLE to publisher positions, the longer your stock will sit below $5.
Perhaps you'll see the bigger picture until something G-Co owns goes bankrupt. That's the only way the G-Co get motivated to start hiring people who will actually make serious changes to the fundamental way G-Co operates internally and in delivering products/services to consumers.
Dave Hunke did nothing for Detroit. He was a direct report to Craig Moon and Craig Moon ran the show with his marketing vp Susie Elwood.
ReplyDelete1:07 Name one thing Hillkirk has done. Bet you can't. He's a nothing with no ideas, and a gci-spawn, having kissed ass up the ladder to get to his new seat. No one has taken that job with less support in the newsroom, er information center.
ReplyDeleteWhat the Hillkirk elevation does reveal is that corporate sees Rupert Murdoch's WSJ as a real challenge to USAT. As former Money editor and financial reporter, Hillkirk has a financial background. But he has absolutely no depth and won't give the WSJ any challenge.
Hillkirk? A nice enough guy from what I recall, but please...Zero leadership abilities and about as charismatic/innovative as a toad. No doubt he was chosen because he won't stand in the way of the pain that is coming to the flagship's newsroom. And note the wording in the Hunke announcement. He makes "tough business decisions." Translation: USAT people are screwed. This brand just pushed the self-destruct button on print. They've been flirting with it for months, and now the countdown has begun.
ReplyDeleteGo ahead and underestimate Dave Hunke at your own peril.
ReplyDeleteHe has a track record at his recent stops of observing and evaluating very intently and then quickly formulating a plan.
And then he actually executes the plan.
Expect the head count to go down a little, efficiency and productivity to increase significantly and the product to improve both in print and online by early 2010.
He'll cobble together a workable plan to stop the bleeding in display advertising now and have aggressive programs in place in time for the first signs of a real economic recovery by mid-2010.
And, most important of all, he'll win the trust and respect of his direct reports. He'll be tough on them but he'll also be completely fair with anyone who puts in an honest effort and does not put their own ambitions ahead of what's best for the company.
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ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
ReplyDeleteMore of the same: People who are too chicken to post these criticisms with their real names.
None of the posts has credibility. All bullshit.
4/28/2009 8:07 PM
Anonymous said...
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
More of the same: People who are too chicken to post these criticisms with their real names.
None of the posts has credibility. All bullshit.
4/28/2009 8:07 PM
Puts you in the same category, right?
I like Hunke, but detroit is cancerous - it did not improve under his watch - he was not as visible as he needed to be on the floor and many of his senior vp's were inept
ReplyDeleteHow is it that many of us at Detroit Media Partnership are now laid off, with more lay offs to come....and our now former CEO, Dave Hunke, gets a sweet promotion ?
ReplyDeleteI thought the captin was supposed to go down with the ship !!
Grow up and stop whining. Hunke was the right choice and not a hard one to figure out. He has earned the job and is proud to be a part of USA TODAY. He'll still oversee Detroit which is a win for everyone. Give the guy some credit, he brough innovation to the DFP and by doing so, saved many many jobs. He thinks things through, makes decisions and holds people accountable. Stop the excessive whining and move on with the decisions being made.
ReplyDeleteLay off Hillkirk. I am a current USAT newsroom staffer with 10+ years there and have always found him to be one of the most reasonable, thoughtful and level-headed people in the room. Yes, he's quiet. But we've had "loud" at the top before and, well, I prefer quiet.
ReplyDeleteI echo 10:01.....Hunke always put the truth out there. was honest about the future, told employees what was happening and what was coming and displayed solid leadership. Hunke saved far more than he might have without the courage to change......
ReplyDeleteI am fortunate enough to work for Dave Hunke here in Detroit. I will miss his vision, his positivity, and his willingness to see the greatness of Detroit. We all learned from him.
ReplyDeleteJust read the new USA TODAY editor's comments in an E&P story. Is he (Hillkirk) kidding? No changes needed? Everything is fine? He's seeing improvement? He's either so removed from reality that he has no idea of how bad things are in the newsroom, or he's just putting on a good face.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, he makes no mention of the good people who were lost and how those vacancies hurt us every day. No mention of the unqualified staffers who somehow remain. No fessing up to the hardships that furloughs have created.
This is so typical of USAT. Never admit to there being anything wrong. Stick your head in the sand and hope bad things go away. Nothing ever gets fixed with this type of leadership. In a way, I can't blame Hillkirk for being in the dark because lower editors and staffers have learned not to complain or to even mention significant problems within their sections to higher-ups. Those who identify things that need fixing at USAT end up being dismissed in one way or another. Frankness is not an asset if you want to work for this Stepford paper.
Regardless of what our new leader says, things are not getting better at the flagship. He lost my respect with that lack of honesty in his first published comments. He could have acknowledged the problems and mapped out a plan to fix them. That sure would have given me more hope. Instead, he did what so many MEs have done over the years...ignore the gorilla in the room.
Hillkirk won't have the power to do what really needs to be done at USAT. Corporate and the attorneys control what goes on at USAT newsroom, not the editor. Ever wonder why so many incompetents remain here? Look no further than the legal and HR departments. They are as responsible as anyone for the decline in this brand. Of course, the incompetents shouldn't have been hired in the first place. The blame for that goes to the front line managers.
ReplyDeleteGood luck to Hillkirk. Too bad we won't know what he is really capable of. He's nothing more than another caretaker on the brink of retirement.
I'd like to see this paper hire someone under 45 one day! USAT editors ride off into the sunset after babysitting a few years. They don't innovate because their careers really don't require it by the time they are 50 or 55, or older, with plenty of money in the bank. They don't strive to leave their marks or identify significant problems that need tough decisions. Some don't even know half of their newsroom staffers.
Hillkirk has got to do more than just listen and spin. He has to act. That would be a refreshing change.
Woo hoo! I worked with Hunke in Cincinnati when he left the Miami Herald, which was still a top Knight Ridder property then. He was fantastic and made things happen - even when that wasn't easy. Come to think of it, that was all the time since nothing was ever easy in Cincy. He's intelligent, quick, thoughtful and ... fun. At least that was my perspective from the newsroom. Congrats to him.
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