'E&P' 2009 Editor of Year Marty Kaiser Named ASNE President

By: Joe Strupp Marty Kaiser, editor of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, is the new president of the American Society of News Editors (ASNE).

Kaiser, who was named E&P's 2009 Editor of the Year, was formally appointed at a meeting of the ASNE board of directors this past weekend. He succeeds Charlotte Hall, editor of the Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel.

ASNE, formerly the American Society of Newspaper Editors, recently dropped ?paper? from its name and made other significant bylaw changes to reflect the increasing reliance of news organizations and consumers on online distribution. Other key bylaw changes opened ASNE membership to editors of online news providers and to deans and other leaders of collegiate journalism programs.

Kaiser said in a statement the bylaw changes will assist the organization in ?capturing the best thinking and shaping the best approaches to assure that our democracy can continue to count on vigorous, probing journalism.?

ASNE?s changes, he added, ?will allow all stakeholders to collaborate on solutions to benefit their own organizations and, importantly, to the benefit of the communities we serve.?

He also stressed the necessity for ASNE to speak out strongly ?against the forces of negativity? about the role of news organizations. ?We need to stand up and push back,? he said.

In E&P's story (free for subscribers) naming Kaiser Editor of the Year, Editor-at-Large Mark Fitzgerald wrote, "In this challenging environment, Marty Kaiser ? no one at the Journal Sentinel calls him Martin ? has pulled off a remarkable trifecta. He has overseen the grim work of reducing staff through two rounds of voluntary buyouts in less than a year, while keeping morale unusually high.

"He's transformed the newsroom to an online-first operation so smoothly that it's the most veteran journalists who are among the most prodigious bloggers, Tweeters and videographers."