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Curley steps down as head of AP
Saranac Lake, NY, Jan 26, 2012 — Earlier this week, Tom Curley announced his retirement after nine years as president and CEO of the Associated Press. The 63 year-old Curley spent his tenure working to transform the news cooperative for the digital era. Now that he's retiring, Curley said he plans to spend more time in the Adirondacks, where he owns a home on Upper Saranac Lake with his wife, Marsha Stanley. Chris Knight intereviewed Curley this week about the changing times faced by newspapers and what he sees as the biggest issues facing the Adirondacks.
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Curley
oversaw the Associated Press during what he described as a "tumultous
time" in news media.
The industry was battered by a rapid shift in the way many consumers get
their news and a painful recession. Many newspapers saw their
advertising profits and circulation plummit.
AP responded by cutting rates for its member newspapers, launching new multimedia platforms and
leading a search for fresh sources of revenue.
While many challenges lie ahead, Curley said, he thinks newspapers will continue to be around for
years to come, especially those that know how to stay relevant and focused on their readership.
"In terms of the business," Curley said, "it's about revenue, and the way you get revenue is being relevant for the audiences that you serve. That has to change. People are getting their news by way of smart phones, and they're finding out that they don't have to wait to get the content, so we have to adjust."
With the growth in digital media
and other online platforms, Curley said the need for good journalism has grown.
"More
information is available and there's more chaos out there, so the
importance of journalism
has actually risen. The power of good journalism, the journalism that
makes a difference and tells people what they need to know, has never
been greater."
That
also means there are more opportunities for young journalists now than
ever before, Curley
said. While revenue has been leaving some of the traditional news media
forms, like newspapers, Curley sees a brighter future for the field:
"If
you look at the audiences for journalism, they've risen. If you look at
the engagement with
pieces of journalism, it's up. The marketplace has grown, there's more
journalism avaialable and there's more places that it's being practiced
than ever before in history. The bigger picture is rosy, and I think
it's a growing market."
Curley
has also kept an eye on issues facing the Adirondacks over the years,
as he and his wife
have owned a home on Upper Saranac Lake since 2003. He named the "growth
issues" faced by communities in the Adirondacks as the biggest story in
the Park these days.
"There's
a lot of pressure on these communities," Curley said. "There's certainly not the
growth that is needed,
and how to go about delivering a future where the people of the
Adirondacks can stay there and maybe a few more of us can afford to move
in. It's an economic story, and how that plays out will determine the
future."
Until
now, Curley says he's only been able to come to the Adirondacks for at
most three weeks
out of the year because of the demands of his job. Once he's retired he
plans to spend more time here where enjoys hiking, paddling, bicking and
skiing. "The
goal is to get there and stay there as much as we can," Curley said.
For North Country Public Radio, I'm Chris Knight.
