New biz editor in Fort Worth

Jim Fuquay, previously the energy reporter at  the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in Texas, has been named the paper’s business editor.

He’s essentially switching spots with former business editor Scott Nishimura, who is becoming a reporter covering jobs and the workplace. Nishimura has been at the paper since 1985, on the business desk since 1990 and in management since 1994.

“We’ve been fortunate that the paper’s newsroom management treats the economy as THE story and has generally maintained the resources to cover it,” says Fuquay. “We did lose our residential real estate reporter to a buyout and will spread the work among existing staff, including our commercial real estate writer.”

In addition, Jack Smith, an editorial writer for the paper, will now cover Fuquay’s old energy beat. And Dianna Hunt, formerly an assistant business editor, will now cover health care.

Finally, John Austin, previously a general assignment reporter for the paper’s now-defunct Arlington bureau, will cover retail and general business topics.

“We are increasing our coverage of jobs and the workplace with Scott Nishimura’s beat, and also with the addition of Steve Campbell, a Metro reporter who will mostly report on how people are managing their own finances and jobs with the recession but also develop stories on workplace and employment issues,” says Fuquay. “Our health care business reporter took a buyout, but we reassigned the beat to new reporter (who converted from an editing position) because health care is simply too large a part of the market these days not to cover as a beat.”