Kent Bernhard Sr., the longtime vice president of editorial at American City Business Journals, died Friday at the age of 72.
Before he retired in 2010, he oversaw news and editorial operations of American City’s 40 metropolitan business newspapers, as well as the company’s editorial research, business data collection operations and Washington bureau. He also previously oversaw editorial content of bizjournals.com’s network of World Wide Web sites.
Bernhard, a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, began his career with Gannett Inc., and then served as a reporter, city editor and assistant managing editor for The Chicago Daily News. After working in Chicago, he joined Knight Ridder Inc., holding positions that included editor of The Charlotte News, news editor of Knight-Ridder’s Washington Bureau and vice president and executive editor of the Detroit Free Press.
After leaving Knight-Ridder, Bernhard was an owner and CEO of a holding company with weekly newspapers and specialty publications in the Middle Atlantic, Southeast and Texas.
He joined Shaw Publishing, a predecessor of American City, in 1989 as president and publisher of Leader Newspapers Inc. in Charlotte and moved to American City five years later.
His obituary can be read here. One of his sons is Kent Bernhard Jr., the money & finance editor of Upstart Business Journal.
