The management of the Peninsula Daily News, the weekly Sequim Gazette and weekly Forks Forum has been reorganized to better serve readers and advertisers.
The reorganization combines the advertising, production and circulation staffs at all three newspapers.
Their news staffs will continue to operate separately from each other.
John Brewer, longtime PDN publisher and editor, is now group publisher, responsible for all operations at the Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum as well as the PDN, the three newspapers’ websites and their social media sites.
Steve Perry, PDN director of advertising, now oversees a combined advertising and production staff representing the PDN, Gazette and Forks Forum.
Michelle Lynn, PDN circulation director, is responsible for subscriptions and single-copy sales of all three newspapers, working with Sequim Gazette-Forks Forum Circulation Manager Bob Morris.
Denise Westmoreland, the current creative services manager at the Sequim Gazette, has been named composing manager for the three newspapers, overseeing a combined staff of graphic artists who create ads and special advertising sections.
Debi Lahmeyer will continue as general manger of the Forks Forum and Sequim Gazette. Sue Stoneman continues at the PDN as manager of advertising operations.
The reorganization was announced by Sound Publishing Inc. Vice President-West Sound Operations Lori Maxim.
Sound Publishing is a division of Black Press Group Ltd. of Surrey, B.C., which owns all three newspapers. They were purchased in October 2011, the PDN from Horvitz Newspapers and the Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum from Sequim businessman Brown Maloney.
Until now, the three newspapers had been operated independently of each other.
Each had its own sales representatives calling on clients across the North Olympic Peninsula, and they did not coordinate on circulation issues.
“This reorganization unifies what had been separate and overlapping advertising, production and circulation staffs,” said Brewer.
“This makes us more efficient and allows us to have a consolidated sales and customer service effort to better serve Clallam and Jefferson counties.
“Meanwhile, the newsrooms will continue to produce their intensely local products by remaining separate and competitive with each other.
“We want to continue to produce the very best newspapers possible — while making it easier for our readers and advertisers to do business with us.”
Michael Dashiell is the editor of the Gazette, which serves the Sequim-Dungeness Valley.
Rex Wilson is executive editor of the PDN, which publishes separate editions Sunday through Friday for Jefferson and Clallam counties (their different nameplates are above at right).
The Forum focuses on Forks, Clallam Bay-Sekiu and the West End of Clallam County.
Joe Smillie, the PDN’s Sequim-Dungeness Valley editor, is now serving as the Forum’s interim editor, working in the West End several days each week independently from his duties for the PDN.
Brewer is seeking a permanent replacement for the Forum’s previous editor, Chris Cook, who retired to California.
Peninsula Daily News
