By: Mark Fitzgerald Martin D. Baron, The New York Times associate managing editor who becomes The Miami Herald's top editor Jan. 1, says he is looking forward to getting back to the paper where he started his career 23 years ago.
"The tradition of the Herald is such that so many journalists who have been through it, and even many who have not, look to it with respect," Baron said in a telephone interview from Miami after being named executive editor Dec. 2.
Baron, 45, is taking charge of a newsroom often described as demoralized by a high staff turnover rate over the last two yeads and recent slights by industry peers.
"At any newspaper, it's normal for morale to go up and down," said Baron. "What I hope to do in terms of morale is to lift it up. People should feel good about what they're doing at the Herald."
Baron also said he's not daunted by pressure from the paper's parent, Knight Ridder, to achieve a 22 percent profit margin next year. "It seems clear to me that what Knight Ridder wants is a high-quality newspaper and also a reasonably profitable newspaper. And those goals do not conflict," said Baron, a Florida native.
Introducing Baron to the newsroom, Publisher Alberto Ibarg?en said the paper's management was most impressed by his proficiency in Spanish and experience competing in The Orange County (Calif.) Register's backyard as the Los Angeles Times' Orange County editor. "The parallel between that experience and our current situation in south Broward County is obvious," Ibarg?en said, referring to competition from Tribune Co.'s Sun-Sentinel.
Since 1996, Baron has been the night editor at The New York Times, where he will be replaced by longtime foreign correspondent Craig R. Whitney, 56.
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(copyright: Editor & Publisher December 4, 1999) [Caption]
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