Longtime journalist Bill Church will be new executive editor of N&O and Herald-Sun

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Bill Church, who started his newspaper career covering high school sports for an Oklahoma weekly and most recently helped oversee 150 newsrooms across the nation, will be the new executive editor of The News & Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina) and The Herald-Sun (Durham, North Carolina).

Robyn Tomlin, vice president of local news for McClatchy, announced Church’s hire Friday.

Church is a Japanese-American, born on an Air Force base in Japan while his father was serving overseas. He will be the first person of color to serve in the newsroom’s top leadership role in The News & Observer’s 156-year history.

He starts the new job Sept. 20.

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