Heidi Wright, COO of EO Media Group and publisher of The Bulletin in Bend, Oregon, was elected president of America's Newspapers Monday afternoon during the Senior Leadership Conference.
In her remarks to the membership, Wright pointed out that, as an industry, "we are stronger together." She said that part of building that strength depends on gatherings like the Senior Leadership Conference, where industry executives network, learn and catch up with each other.
"There is good energy here (and in the industry) right now," Wright said. "It’s a great opportunity to change the narrative and take action that will impact our future."
In addition to Wright, the following officers were elected for 2023-24:
Cameron Nutting Williams, chief revenue officer of Ogden Newspapers, becomes immediate past president.
Three industry executives were elected to second three-year terms on the board of directors:
Five additional industry executives were elected to initial terms on the board:
Directors remaining on the board include:
Wright told attendees at the Senior Leadership Conference that there is work to be done if we want to protect the "core product and evolve, rather than retreat. That’s why I’m glad we’re talking about AI, along with welcoming participants from our Executive Development Program, who hopefully see a future in our industry. We need to inspire them."
She said industry executives "also need to talk about what our role is, both collectively and individually. One area, as leaders in our organizations, is to effectively advocate for ourselves with our elected officials."
She said, "We expect our legacy reps to learn digital sales and our reporters to understand audience engagement metrics. It’s our turn to learn and do our part. To build sustainable organizations and stop the drumbeat of 'we’re dying.'
"To that end, if I can encourage you to do one thing, it’s get comfortable (if you are not) and good at (if you’re not) with advocating for yourselves with state and federal legislators, and the philanthropic organizations that are trying to help our industry.
"For many of us, we’re used to listening to legislators and non-profits talk about what they care about when they come to visit our edit boards. We need to step up and ask them to care about us as an industry and a business."
While she acknowledged that this is not a familiar or comfortable space for many, she said that "much like our legacy reps and reporters need to learn the new tools of the trade, we need to do our part in building sustainability into our organizations. We owe it to them to make the effort."
She said, "My hope is America’s Newspapers can build a playbook that will help the interactions with both your state and federal legislators be meaningful and productive. And also teach us all about how to make an effective philanthropic ask."
An America's Newspapers Advocacy in Action session on Monday afternoon will focus on the Community News and Small Business Support Act, as well as the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act.
