Thomson Reuters creates new business unit

Thomson Reuters announced Wednesday the formation of a new business unit that will combine the company’s existing editorial and news-related sales and marketing operations.

Stephen J. Adler, who became editor-in-chief of Reuters in February 2011, has been appointed to run the new unit as president and editor-in-chief. Adler joined the company’s Professional Division in 2010 after five years leading BusinessWeek and 16 years at The Wall Street Journal.

In his new role, Adler will be responsible for the team that produces and markets Reuters news and commentary to more than a billion users around the world every day. These users comprise three groups: professionals who subscribe to news and information products from Thomson Reuters Financial & Risk, Legal, Tax & Accounting, and Intellectual Property & Science businesses; news organizations that license text, video, pictures and multimedia solutions; and consumers who visit Reuters.com and the Reuters NewsPro app.

Within the new Reuters unit, Steven Schwartz will become managing director, News Agency, the business-to-business news provider serving media professionals around the world with source material, as well as packaged and branded ready to use content from Reuters and third parties.

Schwartz, who joined the company as global head of Media Strategy, Marketing and Business Development in 2011, previously ran business development for Multex.com, was Wenner Media’s first chief digital officer, and earlier, general manager, Digital, for Readers Digest.

“With our editorial and media-business operations under one roof, we will be able to enhance both the creation and marketing of our world-class journalism, to benefit our professional and media customers and all our readers and viewers,” said Adler in a statement. “Journalistic excellence remains paramount,” he added, saying, “we will continue to innovate in news gathering, news delivery and customer service to extend the power, usability and appeal of news for current and potential customers.”