Presley promoted to editor of The Chatsworth Times
Kyle Presley
Kyle Presley has been promoted to managing editor of The Chatsworth Times. In mid-December he replaces Jimmy Espy, editor since September of 2019.
Presley’s face will be familiar to many. He has been a staff writer for the Times since April but has filled various roles at the newspaper over the years, including the editor’s position prior to Espy’s arrival.
Presley, 38, is a Murray County native. As editor of The Chatsworth Times, he will assume all editorial duties and newspaper planning.
The Chatsworth Times is owned by Paxton Media group, headquartered in Paducah, Ky. Regional Publisher Rachel Raney believes Presley will be a natural fit to lead The Chatsworth Times. “I am excited we have the opportunity to promote Kyle Presley as managing editor of the Chatsworth Times,” said Raney. “It’s not every day you have the talent on staff to promote. Kyle is more than ready to take on the task. I know he will work well within the community and serve us well.”
— The Chatsworth Times
Bainbridge native joins The Post-Searchlight as general manager
Bainbridge Media and The Post-Searchlight have announced the appointment of Bainbridge native Anna Kinchen as the new general manager and multimedia sales manager of the newspaper.
Anna Kinchen
With a career spanning 17 years in marketing, communications and project management, Kinchen brings a formidable array of expertise and a diverse skill set to her new role. Her extensive background in strategic content creation, editorial work and multimedia production makes her an ideal fit for the position.
She is a graduate of Bainbridge High School and holds a degree from the Savannah College of Art and Design. She and her husband, Ashley, have two young children. Through her multifaceted career, Kinchen has held key positions as a business owner, photographer, marketing manager, magazine editor, podcast producer, writer, social media and website manager, and graphic designer. These roles have sharpened her ability to craft compelling narratives and execute innovative projects that drive engagement and growth, as well as enhance brand visibility.
Kinchen is particularly enthusiastic about the experienced and dedicated team already in place at The Post-Searchlight. She recognizes that the talented staff is critical to the weekly publication and printing of the newspaper, which also handles printing for several publications. “I was especially attracted to Bainbridge Media due to its innovative multimedia strategies, unwavering commitment to local journalism and strong community involvement. My deep roots in Decatur County fuel my passion for seeing it flourish. Leading a talented team dedicated to telling our community’s story brings me immense satisfaction and purpose. I am excited to contribute to the ongoing success of Bainbridge Media and The Post-Searchlight newspaper.”
— The Post-Searchlight, Bainbridge
Dianne Bond promoted to publisher at The McDuffie Progress
Dianne Bond has been promoted to the position of publisher of The McDuffie Progress of Thomson after serving as the newspaper’s business manager for the past 14 years. She replaces Karen Fioretti, who had served in the role since March 2022. Fioretti left The Progress to take a publisher position at a sister newspaper in Branson, Missouri.
Dianne Bond
Bond began her career at The Progress in February of 2005 as the classified/legal/obit clerk and worked her way up to the role of business manager in 2010. She was recently recognized as 2024 Administrator of the Year by the Thomson-McDuffie Chamber of Commerce.
“Although the beginning of my career was mostly spent in retail management, I have enjoyed learning about newspapers and their important role in community life. I am looking forward to working with our McDuffie Progress team to provide what our readers and advertisers need from the local news source,” Bond said. “I plan to get out into the community to gain an understanding of what our newspaper means to everyone. I’m also open to hearing how we can better serve both readers and advertisers.”
John Lancaster, vice president of Lancaster Management Inc., which owns The McDuffie Progress said, “Dianne has always been one of our best, if not the best business manager in our entire company. We are excited to have her leading The Progress into the future.”
Bond officially began her new role September 11. Lancaster added, “It is always a blessing to be able to promote from within, and Dianne is more than capable of guiding this newspaper. I would also like to thank Karen for her service in Thomson and now in Branson, Missouri, for our family of newspapers.”
— The McDuffie Progress, Thomson
Georgia Supreme Court gives boost to Open Records Act
By Dave Williams, Bureau Chief, Capitol Beat News Service
Private contractors working for government agencies are subject to Georgia’s Open Records Act, the state Supreme Court ruled this month.
The high court’s unanimous decision overturned a lower court’s dismissal last August of an open-records lawsuit filed against a Georgia Tech professor for failing to respond to an open-records request for information concerning his service to the university as a private contractor.
The professor had argued that the legal obligation to produce public records lies solely with a public agency, not with an individual employee or private contractor.
The Georgia First Amendment Foundation filed a friend-of-the-court brief urging the court to overturn rulings of both the Georgia Court of Appeals and, before that, a Fulton County trial court.
“The Georgia Supreme Court is a welcome confirmation of Georgia’s commitment to open access to public records,” said Sarah Brewerton-Palmer, vice president of the foundation’s board of directors.
“Government contractors are often the only ones who have copies of the records they create during their work. Forcing the public to go through a government agency to get those records would in many cases mean that the records are never actually provided.”
The Georgia Supreme Court sent the case back to the trial court for further proceedings.
Julie Davis Weeks leads Elberton Star as editor/publisher
Elbert County native Julie Davis Weeks has been named editor/publisher of The Elberton Star, Community Newspapers Inc. Chairman Alan NeSmith announced earlier this year.
Julie Davis Weeks
“Julie has a passion for Elbert County and community journalism,” NeSmith said. “Her enthusiasm is contagious, and we are proud to have Julie as the newest member of the Star’s team. I look forward to watching your community newspaper continue to thrive under her leadership.”
A graduate of Elbert County Comprehensive High School, Weeks is the daughter of the late Earle and Louise Davis of Elberton. Weeks graduated from the University of Georgia with a bachelor’s degree in English and was one of the first 10 educators in Georgia to be nationally certified by the Journalism Educator’s Association with a journalism educator certification in the early 1990s.
During her time as an American Literature teacher at Stone Mountain High School, Julie helped publish the student newspaper and the student magazine, both of which received multiple awards from the Georgia Scholastic Press Association (GSPA), including “General Excellence” for their divisions in multiple years. After moving to teach at Loganville High School, Julie helped start the school newspaper, which also took home several top awards from the GSPA, a daily news broadcast and advised the school yearbook. Weeks also received the honor of being named the Teacher of the Year during her time at Loganville. After 11 years of teaching, Julie moved to work in the publishing industry for 20 years, serving schools through yearbook production in areas of news and feature writing, photography, design, software and marketing.
“Some of my former student editors have either written for or gone on to work for The Atlanta Journal/Constitution, the Athens Banner/Herald, CNN, The Athens Examiner, The Walton Tribune, Better Homes and Gardens and many other regional and special interest publications,” Weeks said. She has also been a regularly featured presenter at both state and national journalism conventions, including the GSPA events at UGA. Her most current position was as an instructor and curriculum designer for Georgia QuickStart, teaching technical writing, leadership and lean manufacturing courses.
“I am so excited to have been given this opportunity,” Weeks said. “Since before I was old enough to read, The Star has been a dependable source of news and information for my family. I’m looking forward to continuing the tradition of excellence set forth by the previous editors and the current staff.”
When she’s not working, Weeks enjoys spending time with her two children – Hannah, a recent UGA graduate and Ryan, a junior at UGA.
— The Elberton Star
Don Moncrief rejoins Houston Home Journal as publisher
A dedicated leader with a wealth of experience rejoined the Houston Home Journal (HHJ) in July.
Don Moncrief
Don Moncrief, who has previously worked as a sports editor and managing editor for the HHJ, is the new publisher for the Journal.
“We are excited to announce Don Moncrief as publisher for The Houston Home Journal,” DuBose Porter, the executive director of the Georgia Trust for Local News, which owns the Home Journal, said. “Moncrief began his journalism career as a sports editor with The Warner Robins Sun. He brings decades of experience back to the HHJ where he has also worked in the past and was once editor. This is an exciting time for the Houston Home Journal as we continue to grow the staff and launch a new website featuring an even better way to get the news and advertising out to the Houston County community. Moncrief is a native son to Houston County and he is the right person to lead this newspaper at the right time.”
Moncrief served in the Air Force from 1979 to 2000. He said his top request was to work for Robins Air Force Base, but instead was stationed in Moody Air Force Base, near Valdosta, and bases in Texas, Maine, England and Greece. At each station, he worked as editor for the base’s newspaper. The day after he retired from military service, Moncrief began working as sports editor for the Warner Robins Daily Sun, which later merged with the Macon Telegraph. He started his first role at the HHJ as sports editor and then took over as managing editor after a phone call from the owner.
“The managing editor left, and I got a call from [Danny Evans] that said, ‘You’re next in line to be the managing editor, and we want to see if you want to do it.’ And I said, “Yes.’ And then I said, ‘So I should ask for résumés for the sports editor job?’ and he said, ‘No, I think you can do both,’ ” Moncrief said. After leading the sports and news departments for the HHJ, Moncrief began working for a start-up newspaper, The Warner Robins Patriot, a product of a pre-existing radio station. He worked for the company’s newspaper, radio station and television station and toward the end of his stint, did radio and TV sports commentary.
After the Patriot closed down, Moncrief returned to the HHJ as a staff writer, then started working for The Union Advocate as managing editor in 2016. He keeps this role along with his current publisher role for the HHJ and is excited to be a leader in the news industry. “There’s an atmosphere that is so unique to being in a newsroom and being around people that are involved in all the sports that are going on, the entertainment and all the news,” Moncrief said.
For the past decade, Moncrief has also served as pastor of Northside Baptist Church; he celebrates his 10-year anniversary in May. Describing himself as a servant leader, he said he is honored to return to the newsroom and be part of a growing organization. As the Home Journal grows, fueled by vision and guidance from the Georgia Trust for Local News, Moncrief is excited to give back and keep the community informed with balanced coverage on topics that affect it. “With my time at the Houston Home Journal, I got to know how wonderful all of our communities are,” he said. “They consider themselves special, and rightly so. I think we have an obligation to make sure our coverage of these communities is balanced.”
— Houston Home Journal
Rice promoted at Columbus Ledger-Enquirer
Longtime reporter Mark Rice of the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer is moving into a new position as reporter/editor for the publication, taking on a higher-level position that to ensure the newspaper’s work is the best it can be for readers.
Mark Rice
Rice has been a reporter with the Ledger-Enquirer for 32 years. He has primarily covered sports and education, but has also worked on stories that span just about every topic, including government, politics, business, crime and features.
“Recently, I’ve watched Mark work tirelessly to keep our readers informed on key developments in the city’s work to renovate Synovus Park and bring Minor League Baseball to Columbus,” said Jeremy Chisenall, Georgia editor for McClatchy Corp. “He has also fervently covered Columbus City Council, giving readers the latest on important moments such as the chain of events leading to Byron Hickey’s confirmation on the council. There’s no doubt that if you’re a regular reader of our work, you see his byline often. Mark has shown an enthusiasm every day to bring Ledger-Enquirer subscribers the most important news of the moment, and I’m confident he’ll bring that same energy to his new role.”
“I’m honored to be selected for this new role at the Ledger-Enquirer,” Rice said. “Local journalism is vital to any community, and the L-E has a long and successful tradition of providing such content to Columbus and the Chattahoochee Valley. I am committed to doing what I can to continue that tradition. My colleagues and I welcome our readers to help by giving us a holler whenever they have a local news tip.”
— Jeremy Chisenhall, McClatchy Corp.