Maine daily hires new biz reporter

Penelope Overton

Penelope Overton, an investigative reporter with a solid history of watchdog journalism, has joined the Portland Press Herald’s business news team.

Overton comes most recently from the Fort Myers News-Press, where she was lead investigative reporter, following long stints as a metro reporter for the Waterbury Republican-American and the Hartford Courant, where she earned regional journalism awards for her probing work.

“We’re very happy to bring Penny’s nose for news and sharp writing to our readers,” said Carol Coultas, business editor of Maine’s largest newspaper.

Overton will focus primarily on trade, tourism and the lobster industry – a cornerstone of Maine’s economy, valued at nearly $500 million in 2015.

Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.