Adams Publishing Group has announced longtime executive Mary Jo Villa is stepping down from her role of regional president of the company’s southern Wisconsin media group.
Adams has hired Orestes Baez, a newspaper industry veteran, as the new president of the southern Wisconsin group.
Baez joins the company from Gannett where he was regional vice president/group publisher of a chain of Gannett-owned local newspapers in Michigan.
Additionally, he has also served as chief revenue officer and vice president of advertising sales at the Daily Press at Tribune Publishing Co.
Baez also held the post of CEO and president of the Maryland Pennysaver, the largest privately held weekly free community paper distributed via mail covering Maryland.
Now, in his new role, Baez will lead a region that includes several weekly and daily newspapers, including the Gazette, the Beloit Daily News, the Watertown Daily Times, the Daily Jefferson County Union, and the commercial printing plant Adams operates in Janesville.
Baez said:
“They (Adams’ southern Wisconsin newspapers) seem to be focusing on local journalism, which is one of the best, defendable outposts that we have. There was a good brand recognition in the marketplace from what I can tell. Those things were strong indicators that there was some opportunity.”
