By BOB BLAKE
South Bend Tribune
Alan Achkar knows a thing or two about championship droughts — he grew up and began his news career in Cleveland.
When his career trajectory took him to St. Louis, he quickly learned how the other side lives.
“I am a long-suffering Cleveland sports fan. My Browns, my Indians and my Cavs have a sort of pathetic history,” Achkar said. “When you live in a town where the baseball team wins not one but two World Series, it’s kind of hard not to be a fan.
“What that means is I’m bringing a ton of good luck with me and that means Notre Dame is bound to win a national championship.”
Achkar is hoping to parlay his good luck beyond the gridiron, however, and channel his success as he takes over the reins as executive editor of the South Bend Tribune.
A veteran editor and reporter, Achkar brings more than two decades of experience in journalism to The Tribune from The Plain Dealer in Cleveland and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, where he most recently served as metro editor in charge of the day-to-day operations of the newspaper’s local news staff.
In addition, Achkar helped lead the Post-Dispatch’s efforts to embrace technology as a means of delivering content. It was that embrace of technology that made Achkar stand out, according to Kim Wilson, president and publisher of the South Bend Tribune.
“Of course we have to continue to do great journalism and serve our community with the ink-on-paper product, but the new generation of readers expects to be able to access the same, meaningful information on electronic platforms that fit their lifestyle,” Wilson said. “Having somebody that can bridge that difference and lead that vision is critical to our ability to serve readers of all generations.”
Achkar said he sees one of his strengths as being able to unify great journalism with new technology.
“Kim was offering an opportunity to not just oversee and be the head of a newsroom, but she is very much aware and recognizes the need to continue to adapt as technology continues to change the world,” Achkar said. “I very much value a strong print product. I also understand the world is changing and news companies like The Tribune need to continue to evolve and change and figure out how to get the information into people’s hands in any device that they want.”
Achkar succeeds Tim Harmon, who retired in June after 17 years leading The Tribune newsroom.
“Tim was well regarded by his team and by this community,” Wilson said. “He’s definitely left some big shoes to fill.”
The newsroom leadership transition comes on the heels of a redesign of the newspaper and amid a push to focus on the continued growth and evolution of The Tribune’s various products and platforms.
“One of the commitments that we made at the time of the redesign was it’s an evolution of change and continual product improvement that we’re seeking to do,” Wilson said. “It’s not just we’re going to redesign one time and not talk about it for 10 more years.
As he transitions into his new role, Achkar said he comes in with an open mind and a keen eye on how to maximize efforts to get information to readers in the format they desire.
“Print is one medium. People read tablets differently than they read their phones and they don’t read those the same way they read on their desktops,” Achkar said. “Presentation on all these different platforms is something that should be talked about and thought about.
Achkar, 43, said he and his wife, Toni, along with their three children — Christopher, 12, Marie, 10, and Andrew, 8 — are looking forward to getting acquainted with the community.
“I’m excited to get to know South Bend and what makes South Bend tick and its history and what drives South Bend today,” he said. “I’m really curious and excited about that.”
Achkar also said he’s excited to learn more about the University of Notre Dame and its research and impact locally and beyond.
The post Replaces retiring Tim Harmon: Ohio native new South Bend Tribune executive editor appeared first on Schurz Communications Inc..