Gannett Appoints Craig Dubow New President and CEO

By: E&P Staff Wednesday afternoon the Gannett Co.'s board of directors named Craig Dubow, 50, as president and CEO, effective July 15, 2005. He will assume two positons currently held by Douglas McCorkindale.

McCorkindale, Gannett's current chairman, president, and CEO, will continue as chairman until his term ends on July 1, 2006.

Currently, Dubow is president and CEO of the Gannett Broadcasting Division.

"Craig has all the skills a 21st century media CEO should have, from highly successful management experience and broad-based knowledge of the digital world to the vision and energy of a top-notch leader," said McCorkindale in a statement. "He represents all the best of Gannett and is the perfect choice to be the company's new CEO."

Paul Ginocchio, a publishing industry analyst with Deutsche Bank Securities, called the succession announcement "somewhat expected," but said it was "about a year early."

Ginocchio told The Associatd Press that he expected investors to view Dubow's appointment as a "sound decision," adding the broadcasting executive was "a known quantity."

As for McCorkindale, Ginocchio told AP: "Everyone knew [he] would be departing in a year, but the fact that he's staying on as chairman probably comforts a lot of people."

Dubow has worked for Gannett for 24 years. He joined the company in 1981 in advertising and sales at a Denver station, KUSA-TV. He was promoted to general sales manager at Gannett's Austin, Texas, station, KVUE-TV, where he worked his way up to president and general manager. In 1992, he was appointed president and general manager of WXIA-TV in Atlanta. Dubow became executive vice president of Gannett Television in 1996. In 2000, he was promoted to president of the Gannett Broadcasting Division, and in 2001 he was given the title of CEO.

"I am eager to lead Gannett through this important time of transition in our new, digital world," Dubow said in a statement. "The strength of Gannett's traditional businesses will provide the base for our future growth in new technologies and changing ways to deliver our news and information for our readers, viewers and advertisers. Our strength comes from our core First Amendment values, our devotion to customer service, and our people. I especially want each of our 53,000 employees to know how important their passion and creativity are to Gannett's continuing success."

Also today, and effective July 15, 2005, the Gannett board named Roger Ogden, 60, president and CEO of the broadcasting division, succeeding Dubow. Ogden currently is senior vice president of Gannett Broadcasting and president and general manager of KUSA-TV in Denver, positions he has held since 1999. As a senior vice president of the division, Ogden oversees Gannett's stations in Atlanta, Cleveland, Denver, Phoenix, Washington, and Sacramento, as well as The Captivate Network. Ogden will join the Gannett Management Committee.

"Having a seasoned broadcaster with Roger's credentials ready to step into this key role demonstrates the depth of Gannett's talent," Dubow said in statement. "Roger is an experienced manager, a respected industry leader, and a talented strategist and visionary. His long experience with our broadcasters makes him an ideal choice to head the division."