Associate publisher named at Southeast Missourian newspaper

A newspaper veteran with a history of new media innovation has been named associate publisher of the Southeast Missourian, said Jon K. Rust, publisher of the newspaper. The executive, Jim Maxwell, is currently president and publisher of the Pocono Mountains Media Group, which includes a 20,000-circulation daily in eastern Pennsylvania and several nearby weeklies.

Maxwell has also been named vice president of operations for Rust Communications, a family media group based in Cape Girardeau with 18 daily and more than 30 weekly newspapers in eight states.

"Jim is coming on board not only to provide additional management strength in Cape Girardeau and other regional newspapers, but we have identified him as the next chief operating officer of Rust Communications," Rust said. "For the next 18 months, he will be working closely with current COO Wally Lage, who will transition to a consulting role in 2010."

The chief operating officer and vice president of operations both report to brothers Rex Rust and Jon K. Rust, co-presidents of Rust Communications. Gary W. Rust is chairman of the board.

"Jim has a great understanding of what makes dynamic communities tick and how important a community newspaper is to area progress," Rex Rust said. "For the past eight years, he has played vital leadership roles with the Ottaway newspaper group, a division of News Corporation, which also owns the Wall Street Journal and Fox TV.

"We're excited about Jim and his wife Patty joining our newspaper family," Rust added.

Maxwell is a native of Oregon and a former teacher and high school coach before entering radio and newspaper sales. He has worked in newspaper markets both much larger and smaller than Cape Girardeau, and he is a former corporate advertising director for Ottaway, a publicly traded company. As publisher of the Pocono Record, he was recognized by the American Press Institute for his newspaper's initiatives in mobile news delivery and the Internet.

"We conducted an extensive search process before hiring Jim," Wally Lage said. "Several publishers from throughout our company were involved, and we're thrilled to have him join the team. I really think the folks within the Rust organization and the communities we serve will determine quickly that Jim is a quality guy."

The Maxwells have one daughter who attends school and works in the New York City area. Jim Maxwell will begin at the Missourian next Wednesday.