Gordon McLeod, a distinguished and well-respected media executive who held senior positions at Newsday, The Wall Street Journal, Time Inc., and CBS News, among others, died of complications from a nine-year battle with cancer on April 26 in New York City. He was 60.
McLeod was a communications executive who helped change the landscape of journalism over the course of his 35-year career. He helped usher print journalism into a new digital era; he championed world-class content and technology and extended traditional publishing, distribution and advertising models. At the end of his career, McLeod was a board member, investor, and strategic consultant for early-stage companies that apply machine learning and artificial intelligence.
McLeod served as President of the Newsday Media Group from 2014 until its sale in 2016. During that time, he ran Newsday, the 5th largest daily newspaper in the US, and the largest free daily newspaper in New York City.
Earlier, McLeod built his career delivering digital platforms for established media companies. He was President of The Wall Street Journal Digital Network, where he led a team into digital journalism; one of the first apps was created for the original iPad. At Time Inc., McLeod served as President of SI.com and Sports Illustrated Pictures, General Manager of Time Inc. Interactive, and VP/GM of Parenting.com and ParentingTV. At CBS, McLeod was Director of CBS News’ Advertising & Promotion department. Prior to joining CBS News, McLeod worked at agencies Edelman Worldwide and Sawyer/Miller Group.
Later, McLeod moved to the tech industry as President of Krux Digital, where he helped transform a young company to a leading market position prior to its sale to Salesforce.
McLeod received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Economy from the University of California, Berkeley and a Master of Public Policy from Harvard University. He is survived by his wife Melanie Grisanti; a Senior Vice President at Sesame Workshop, his daughters Grace and Jane McLeod, his father Neil McLeod, and his sister Paddy McKenzie. Memorial gatherings to celebrate McLeod’s life will be held on dates to be announced soon.
