George Rodrigue will step down as editor-in-chief of the Plain Dealer next month. Rodrigue will transition to work at the paper鈥檚 sister company, Advance Local.
Rodrigue will step down March 1, . He鈥檒l be replaced by the paper鈥檚 current managing editor, Tim Warsinskey, who has worked at the Plain Dealer for 30 years.
鈥淚f there鈥檚 any consolation in my departure, it is that the newsroom is in excellent hands,鈥� Rodrigue wrote.
During Rodrigue鈥檚 five-year tenure at the paper, the Plain Dealer embarked on new projects to bring coverage to the community, Rodrigue wrote, including a regional journalism collaborative. But it also saw the editing and layout work outsourced to a central location managed by Advance, bringing staffing cuts and layoffs.
鈥淥ver the past several years, our subscribers have seen a lot of change, driven largely by the industry鈥檚 economic circumstances. Changes to our price, our delivery system, design, and staff,鈥� Rodrigue wrote. 鈥淎midst all that, there was one consistent bright spot: The increasingly close collaboration between our newsroom and our community.鈥�
While there has been tension between the Guild and management because of the outsourcing, Rodrigue helped the paper to grow under his leadership, said Ginger Christ, Vice Chair of the PD News Guild.
鈥淗e鈥檚 definitely helped our newsroom in terms of enterprise reporting. He moved us into solutions journalism, he鈥檚 expanded our cultural coverage,鈥� Christ said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e definitely seen some strides there.鈥�
But the change brings the paper into an unsteady space, she said.
鈥淲e鈥檙e seeing one person leave, another person move up and potentially not having that position filled, so we might have one fewer leader in our newsroom,鈥� Christ said. 鈥淭hat worries us a bit.鈥�
Guild members hope to maintain a good working relationship with Warsinskey, Christ said, particularly since he has been with the paper for decades. The Plain Dealer staff remains committed to covering the community, Christ said.
鈥淲e鈥檝e gone through a lot here but all of us who remain are really committed to the community and to telling those stories,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to keep fighting for the community and for our ability to keep covering those stories.鈥�
