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A. H. Belo Corporation Announces Retirement of Jim Moroney, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer; Robert W. Decherd to Succeed Moroney
Friday 20. April 2018 - A. H. Belo Corporation (NYSE:AHC) announced today that Jim Moroney, chairman, president and Chief Executive Officer of A. H. Belo Corporation, plans to retire effective with the May meeting of the Board of Directors. Moroney will continue serving as a director and will assume the title of Publisher Emeritus of The Dallas Morning News, where he served as publisher and Chief Executive Officer from 2001 until March 2018.
Robert W. Decherd will succeed Moroney as chairman, president and Chief Executive Officer. Decherd previously served as chairman and Chief Executive Officer of A. H. Belo and Belo Corp. from 1987-2013. Decherd has remained a director over the five years since Moroney became the Companys Chief Executive Officer.
Tyree B. Miller, Lead Director of A. H. Belo, said, “The Board is enormously grateful to Jim for leading the Company through a period of unprecedented change in the newspaper and media industries. His intense focus on A. H. Belos journalistic mission and his deft handling of the Companys business portfolio have put A. H. Belo in a position only a few U.S. newspaper companies can claim today. We thank him and welcome Robert back to the leadership role he ably fulfilled for many years.”
Moroney added, “When I became CEO in 2013, I told the Board I would commit to four years. Its now been almost five years and I asked Ty to form a transition committee which worked diligently during the past year to design the organization we now have in place. I feel very good about where we are as a company.” The Boards transition committee was composed of Miller, director John P. Puerner, who preceded Miller as Lead Director, Moroney and Decherd.
Moroney continued, “Besides continuing to transform the Companys business model, I wanted to hire a new editor, a new publisher and play a role in hiring a new editor of the editorial board. All of that was accomplished by early March of this year and so now, closing in on five years, its time for me to look to other endeavors. It has been the privilege of my professional life to serve as publisher of The Dallas Morning News.”
During Moroneys tenure at The Dallas Morning News, the newspaper won three Pulitzer Prizes, in 2004, 2006 and 2010, and was a finalist on several other occasions. Its work on long-term news and editorial series, especially the divide between the citys affluent and underserved areas, resulted in significant actions by local government. A multi-year editorial campaign culminated with the Texas legislature requiring its members to record their votes for the first time in states history. The Dallas Morning News progressive work in digital content has earned widespread acclaim in the industry and generally.
During the past five years, A. H. Belo has invested in digital marketing services businesses, disposed of numerous non-core assets, greatly strengthened the two pension plans sponsored by the Company, and most recently, re-located its headquarters and The Dallas Morning News to a renovated historic building in downtown Dallas.
Moroney plans to continue working from time-to-time with various organizations in the newspaper business and elsewhere to pursue his long-standing interest in digital journalism. He is generally considered to be one of the industrys leaders in transforming a newspapers legacy business to a more digitally-driven business and in diversifying its sources of revenue.
In the new organization, Decherds direct reports will be Grant Moise, president and publisher of The Dallas Morning News, Tim Storer, president of Belo + Company, Chief Financial Officer Katy Murray, General Counsel Chris Larkin, and Chief People Officer Julie Hoagland.
Decherd said, “Its exciting to serve again as A. H. Belos Chief Executive Officer. We are in the enviable position of being able to conceive and implement initiatives that reinforce shareholder value while upholding the Companys long-standing commitment to local journalism, editorial leadership, and far-reaching news projects. A. H. Belo has great people, strong conviction, and a durable financial structure.”