Leslie Hurst named president and publisher of The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, MS

Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) announced today that Leslie Hurst has been named president and publisher of The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, MS. She formerly was president and publisher of The Daily Advertiser in Lafayette, LA, and the Daily World in Opelousas, LA.

Hurst remains South Group vice president, overseeing the Hattiesburg American and other Gannett operations in the Gulf Coast area. A replacement in Lafayette has not yet been named.

"In her role as South Group vice president, Leslie has developed deep knowledge of the Gulf Coast area,” said Robert Dickey, president of U.S. Community Publishing. "I know she and the team in Jackson will work together to further serve our customers on all the multi-media platforms offered by The Clarion-Ledger.”

Hurst succeeds Larry Whitaker, who announced his retirement Tuesday, effective Dec. 31. Whitaker was named publisher of The Clarion-Ledger in 2006.

"In his 22 years with Gannett, Larry has served in executive roles in Asheville, NC; Springfield, MO; Marion, IN; and Shreveport, LA,” added Dickey. "He’s done an outstanding job for those local communities. Among his many important contributions, Larry may be best remembered for supporting our sites with supplies and other aid during Hurricanes Ivan, Katrina and Rita.”

Hurst started her career with Gannett in 1987 when she was the marketing services director for The Times in Shreveport, LA, and Shreveport Journal, which operated under a JOA (Joint Operating Agreement). She later served as the market development director at Gannett’s Pensacola (FL) News Journal and The News-Press in Fort Myers, FL, before being named president and publisher of Gannett media organizations in Hattiesburg, MS; Huntington, WV; Boise, ID; and Lansing, MI.

Hurst was a Gannett President’s Ring winner for outstanding performance as publisher in 2001 and 2008. She also was second runner-up for Gannett Marketing Executive of the Year in 1993 and a Gannett President's Ring winner for excellence in Market Development in 1992 and 1993. She has a bachelor of journalism degree from the University of Missouri School of Journalism.

Whitaker joined Gannett in 1989 as retail director for the Arkansas Gazette in Little Rock and moved to The Gainesville (GA) Times as advertising director in 1990. He has been a Gannett President’s Ring winner twice for his work as an advertising director and once as a publisher.

Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is an international news and information company operating on multiple platforms including the Internet, mobile, newspapers, magazines and TV stations. Gannett is an Internet leader with hundreds of newspaper and TV web sites; CareerBuilder.com, the nation's top employment site; USATODAY.com; and more than 80 local MomsLikeMe.com sites. Gannett publishes 82 daily U.S. newspapers, including USA TODAY, the nation's largest-selling daily newspaper, and more than 600 magazines and other non-dailies including USA WEEKEND. Gannett also operates 23 television stations in 19 U.S. markets. Gannett subsidiary Newsquest is one of the UK's leading regional community news providers, with 17 daily paid-for titles, more than 200 weekly newspapers, magazines and trade publications, and a network of web sites.