By: George Garneau
SIX MONTHS AFTER management put a boss over his head, Neil Westergaard has quit as executive editor of the Denver Post.
Westergaard, who rose through the ranks during 15 years at the paper, cited "unease" between himself and Dennis Britton, the former Chicago Sun-Times top editor who was hired as editor in chief over Westergaard. The departing editor said he and Britton lacked the chemistry, or trust, required for the relationship to work. For Britton to make his mark on the paper, Westergaard concluded, it was time to go.
In a letter to newsroom workers Sept. 26, Westergaard said he had agreed to stay on for a while, but had done all he could for the transition.
The departure was hardly surprising. No. 1 editors rarely sit comfortably in No. 2 spots. Nevertheless, Westergaard said he and Britton "differ only slightly" on the Post's future.
Westergaard reaffirmed his pride in leading the paper to significant gains against the competing Rocky Mountain News. He was deeply disappointed that management ? publisher Ryan Mckibben and William Dean Singleton, president and CEO of MediaNews group, which manages the paper ? superseded his authority.
"He had been number one and suddenly he was number two," Britton told the Rocky Mountain News. "It was a very difficult, awkward situation. I think it was the right decision." Britton is seeking a managing editor.
Westergaard, 44, who succeeded Gil Spencer, a former New York Daily News editor, as boss of the Post newsroom, plans to spend more time with his family before pursuing career interests in and out of newspapers.
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