E&P's 2015 Publisher of the Year: Michael “Mac” Tully, The Denver Post

When Denver Post publisher Michael “Mac” Tully received the news he had been named E&P’s 2015 Publisher of the Year, he said he was “very surprised” to receive such an unexpected honor.

“I’m getting recognized for work that is being done by everyone at the newspaper…I’m not the one selling ads, writing stories or delivering papers,” he said. “Everyone at this paper contributed to this recognition.”

Tully was named Denver Post publisher in May 2013, but his journalism career started more than 30 years ago. After graduating from the University of Kansas with a degree in business administration, he spent nine years at the Kansas City Star working in the advertising department. From there, he served as vice president of advertising at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in Texas, and in 1996, he was named publisher of the Arlington Star-Telegram. In 1999, he became publisher of the Bradenton Herald in Florida and turned around the paper in a highly-competitive market.  Tully was honored with then-parent company Knight Ridder’s top award, the John S. Knight Gold Medal, for his work. Tully moved on to a corporate vice president position with Knight Ridder, where he was responsible for 16 markets.

“It was an interesting role,” Tully said. “It exposed me to sixteen different ways to go at business, but it involved a lot of traveling.”

So, when the publisher’s position opened up at the Kansas City Star, Tully returned to his former newsroom. After the Knight Ridder chain was purchased by McClatchy Co., Tully was asked to join the Bay Area News Group (BANG) in California in 2008, where he served as president and publisher of the San Jose Mercury News and BANG group vice president.

When Tully is mulling over a career move, he considers several factors. “I look at the people you’re going to work with, the challenges that are laid out and if I can make a difference.”

That was certainly the case when Tully arrived in Denver two years ago. In addition to his Denver Post position, Tully also oversees the company’s other Colorado operations, including the Daily Camera in Boulder, the Longmont Times-Call, the Loveland Reporter-Herald, the Cañon City Record, The Colorado Daily in Boulder and multiple weekly publications. He was also named an executive vice president of parent company Digital First Media (DFM) and currently sits on the Newspaper Association of America board of directors.

If you look at the trajectory of Tully’s rewarding career, you have to wonder if the 59-year-old publisher is finished climbing the ladder. But as he reflects on his journey, Tully confidently says he has reached the “pinnacle” of his career at the Denver Post.

In the Trenches

When I asked Tully to describe a typical work day, Tully said each day had a different pace. For instance, on that Monday I spoke with him, Tully had revenue meetings lined with up his advertising and finance leads to go over the month. Then, that afternoon, he had plans to conduct his walkabouts around the building to make sure everything was on track. Also on his plate: an upcoming presentation deadline as chair of DFM’s Project Revenue, which highlights money-generating initiatives in the group. Like any other newspaper publisher, Tully wears several hats.

“Every day is different,” he said. “And I try to get a sense of what kind of opportunities and challenges are presented in each one.”

Nolan Epple, vice president of national advertising, said Tully is often found “in the trenches” and operates with an “open door, (listening) intently and (following) through.”

To have a publisher who’s not afraid to fight or get dirty in order to stay ahead has been integral to the Denver paper, where some of their creative innovations have propelled the publication to the frontlines.

In 2013, the Post hired its first marijuana editor and launched The Cannabist (thecannabist.co), a website dedicated to covering the culture of cannabis. The physical layout of the newsroom now integrates a television and radio studio. Video is pushed daily.

“It’s encouraging to have a leader who is invested in digital,” said editor Greg Moore. “Vocally, (Tully) has been really supportive, and he’s putting his money where his mouth is.”

But Tully deflects the credit right back to Moore and the newsroom for creating these forward-thinking projects. “These ideas all came out of the newsroom,” he said. “It’s been phenomenal to see these changes in every department.”

From e-books to the creation of Denver Post TV and the launch of a membership program, Tully believes it’s these “new, non-traditional ideas” that will help generate and stabilize the flow of revenue.

“As a publisher, I’ve learned to give people the opportunity to succeed and then get out of the way,” he said. “That doesn’t mean be disinterested; be engaged, but don’t micromanage. Celebrate, encourage, brainstorm, show confidence, and correct if necessary to set them on course.”

Operating with Innovation

The Denver Post reaches more than 1 million print and online readers weekly, and Tully said when it comes to making the best decisions for the company, it always includes managing both print and digital audiences and having both of them work “side by side.”

But Tully understands the path to success is to empower an innovative culture, and that includes cultivating a digital atmosphere. Tully pointed to the rich digital history found at the Post, such as the creation of AdTaxi in 2010. A game changer five years ago, the digital marketing company now operates globally.

“AdTaxi changed our ability to operate in the digital space,” Tully said. “It opened up meaningful discussions about audience and how to sell on different platforms.”

To keep up with the level of competition found in digital, Tully said he looks at metrics that present audience and revenue opportunities. Saying yes to an idea like The Cannabist and DPTV makes sense, he said, because it presents a positive cash flow.

“We look at a six month projection,” Tully said.

But when it comes to an idea like coupon books, Tully understands the cash flow won’t be immediate, but six months gives them more time to make them successful and set them down a path to be successful.

“We have had to say no to some things because it was too crowded or it wouldn’t lead to a ROI,” he said. “We need to have flexibility and the budget has to fit before we launch anything.”

Moore agreed planning has to take place before he approaches Tully with a new project. “It’s about us doing our homework on return of investment and giving them a little runway. We have meetings to hash it out. (Tully) is willing to say no, but he also has said yes a lot.”

Managing print is another story. Although the audience decline is manageable, Tully said it’s the advertising side that’s challenging.

“The pie is getting sliced into more pieces, and print is still a big part of that,” he said. “It’s what’s going to separates us from our (digital) competitors.”

To motivate his staff, Tully shared a few anecdotes he told his employees: “Do it today. The opportunity might not exist tomorrow…be the first…first to launch, first to get the story, first to talk to that client.”

And then there’s the “power of one.”

“Do one more thing,” Tully explained. “Make one more call, and that usually pays off in the ads department. It will put the odds in your favor and help you beat your competition.”

“Mac’s newspaper”

When Tully arrived in Denver, he had some big shoes to fill. William Dean Singleton founded MediaNews Group in 1983 with the late Richard B. Scudder. Together, they purchased the Denver Post in 1987. During Singleton’s tenure as publisher, the paper won five Pulitzer Prizes. Singleton, who has multiple sclerosis, handed over the reins to Tully so he could focus on his health and spend more time with his family.

At the time of his retirement, Singleton told Westword, Denver’s alternative weekly paper, “I’ve known Mac Tully for twenty years. I hired him from the Kansas City Star to run San Jose…and I’m very comfortable with him. He’s published some very good newspapers, and his father was a publisher, so he has the understanding of what a newspaper should be in a community, but with a much better grasp of the new world than I have.”

“It’s Mac’s newspaper now,” he said in the same interview.

When I reminded Tully of that quote, he told me it wasn’t just his newspaper. “It’s our newspaper,” he said referring to his staff. “Dean will continue to be our biggest billboard, and we move forward making the best decisions for the paper.”

Moore, who has served as editor since 2002, said the transition from Singleton to Tully was an easy one. In a town with such a huge personality, Moore said, Tully fit right in.

“No one can ever replace Dean,” he said. “But now we’re in the Mac Tully era.”

Steve Rossi, DFM president and CEO, said as soon as Tully arrived in Denver, he became involved with his new community. “He met with business owners and advertisers and was quick to build those relationships.”

And like at the previous publications he led, Rossi said Tully thrived in an environment where the business was challenging because that pushed him to find opportunities to discover revenue. Since Tully became Post publisher, Rossi said he has seen the paper improve overtime, particularly with how they’re transforming their print and digital products.

Known for being a “hands-on guy,” Tully said he enjoys sitting down with clients and with community leaders.

“It’s about ramping up our locally controlled dollars,” he said. “How can we provide them with a solution, create great partnerships and grow revenue?”

Being hands-on also means greeting his staff members with a “Good morning” or a “How are you?” especially in a setting where many people sometimes never see top leadership. Moore also praised Tully’s employee relations, saying the publisher was always very encouraging and inclusive.

Looking ahead at the paper, Tully said his goals are to stabilize revenue and to continue to hold print, manage digital, and expand projects.

“Personally, I’d like for us to receive a Pulitzer while I’m here,” he added. The Post was last awarded with one in 2013 for breaking news reporting for its coverage of the 2012 Aurora shooting.

Today’s Publisher

Outside of the office, Tully enjoys hiking with his wife, Rebecca, and he’s looking forward to a planned safari trip to Africa. He’s a father of three children and a grandfather to four. Since moving to Denver, he’s become a huge Broncos football fan, and like the players in the field, you have to learn how to take some hits.

Like other newspapers around the country, Tully and the Post have seen their share of uncertainty. Earlier this year, DFM was close to selling off its newspapers, but a sale was put on hold in May when it was determined the move would not be at the “best interest of shareholders.”  This past summer the Post reduced the size of its Monday and Tuesday print editions and announced another round of buyouts.

“It’s not going to get easier for any of us,” Moore said, but when it came to making these hard decisions, he said Tully always made sure it was about putting the business’s best interest first.

Mark Zieman, McClatchy vice president of operations, worked with Tully during his Kansas City days, first as his editor, then succeeding him as publisher. “Mac led his share of tough budget sessions. Missing a financial target was never an option with (him), so the meetings weren’t easy or fun. But he always attacked budget challenges proactively and collaboratively, and promoted business literacy with employees so that everyone knew what they were fighting for. You always felt he was in the boat rowing with you.”

When I asked Tully what it took to be a publisher in today’s tough environment, he said with a big laugh, “Whiskey.” And who hasn’t been there?

But then he compared it to riding a horse. “We all get bucked off…you get knocked down, but you get up and fight, and what we’re fighting for is worth it…you have to give more punches than you take.”

Zieman echoed the same sentiment. “I know for a fact that the publisher job has never been harder than it is today. It takes a rare combination of skills to completely rebuild your business model for a digital world, hold true to a journalistic mission that’s more than 100 years old—and navigate through a recession at the same time. Mac has proven he can do all that, plus you actually like working with him. That’s a peachy combination.”