We are excited to welcome Katie Gray to BlueLena as executive director, publisher growth, where she brings extensive experience and an impressive track record in audience development, revenue growth and reader engagement at some of the nation’s largest news organizations.
In this new leadership role, Gray will oversee BlueLena’s Solutions Lab, strategic services and consulting support delivered through its partnership with the Knight Resiliency Lab at the American Journalism Project (AJP). She will work closely with AJP and its portfolio of nonprofit news organizations to develop, test and implement strategies that strengthen audience relationships, accelerate reader revenue growth and ensure long-term financial sustainability, while generating insights that aim to benefit local news organizations across the country.
Gray joins BlueLena after leading consumer marketing and growth efforts at major national and local media organizations. Most recently, she served as vice president of growth marketing at USA TODAY Network, where she led growth strategy across USA TODAY and more than 200 local publications.
Previously, she served as vice president of consumer marketing at the Los Angeles Times, helping expand digital subscriptions and strengthen engagement and relationships with readers.
“Local journalism plays an essential role in building informed and connected communities, and its long-term success depends on developing strong, lasting relationships with readers,” said Gray. “I’m excited to join BlueLena and work alongside the American Journalism Project and its portfolio to bring together the right strategies, tools and expertise to support goals for growth. This is an opportunity to help these organizations turn their ambitions into meaningful impact and build financial support for their futures.”
Throughout her career in publishing, Gray has connected audience insights with tactics and strategies that deliver measurable results. Her experience spans audience acquisition, consumer engagement, subscription growth, retention and developing healthy and diverse revenue models for news organizations.
Supporting publisher success through the Knight Resiliency Lab
Gray's appointment marks an important next step in BlueLena’s expanding strategic partnership with the American Journalism Project, which supports the growth and sustainability of more than 50 nonprofit state and local news organizations across the country.
Through its work with the Knight Resiliency Lab, BlueLena provides participating AJP news organizations with a combination of technology infrastructure, strategic guidance, specialized consulting and hands-on support designed to accelerate audience and membership development.
Under Gray's leadership, the program will emphasize individualized publisher support, measurable performance outcomes and the development of repeatable and proven approaches to audience acquisition, engagement, conversion-to-donors and long-term retention.
Her appointment also affirms BlueLena’s founding mission: to deliver technology-enabled services backed by publishing industry expertise, dedicated resourcing and hands-on support. By seamlessly connecting publishing, audience and revenue management infrastructure, BlueLena helps publishers move beyond fragmented tools and strategies toward more integrated, efficient and successful operations.
About BlueLena:
BlueLena is the journalism industry’s leading strategy consulting, audience and revenue development solution provider, helping more than 300 independent news organizations across North America build sustainable business models.
Founded in 2020 by publishers, journalists, and media technology professionals, BlueLena combines purpose-built technology with embedded strategic consulting and execution support to help publishers grow audiences, strengthen reader relationships, and diversify revenue through subscriptions, memberships, donations, advertising, sponsorships and major gifts.
Our integrated platform includes audience engagement tools, CRM and moves management, donor intelligence, marketing automation and analytics, enabling news organizations of all sizes to operate with the capabilities of a much larger organization while remaining focused on serving their communities.
Contact us today to explore ways we can support your success.
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