By Christine Imbs
Kevin Mowbray is always looking for a way to win.
“I’m competitive,” he says smiling broadly. “It’s in every cell in my body. But I think that makes life fun.”
And without a doubt, he enjoys it. Even in a friendly game of racquetball, with a couple of friends, his competitive nature takes over.
“I used to play several times a week with a couple of guys. We’d get
up around 5:30 in the morning just to be the first ones on the court,”
he says. “They were a little older than me and more experienced.
But I was determined to beat them.”
Mowbray says every time they played, he’d wear a black shirt with a red and white stripe. It not only distracted his opponents, but it attracted more than one smack in the back.
“I was physically bigger than they were, and there I’d be out front with this big red stripe,” he says. “We got to laughing because at the end of the day, I got hit in the back more than once with the racquetball. I suppose
I had it coming. But I did what I set out to do.”
You could also say that about his career. He joined the Lee Enterprises newspaper chain in 1986 as an advertising sales representative in his hometown of Kewanee, Ill.
"It was a way to pay for my student loans," he says. "Also, I had been dating my wife for five years and it was time to grow up, so to speak. But I found I really loved making the ads work for our advertisers."
Mowbray quickly climbed the corporate ladder, moving from advertising sales positions to Lee's national sales manager for corporate sales and marketing. In 1995 he took over as advertising manager for the Lincoln Journal Star and three years later became general manager of the Missoulian newspaper in Missoula, Mont. Then in 2000 he had his first opportunity as a publisher at The Bismarck Tribune in North Dakota.
"Being a publisher in Bismarck was fun for me because itÕs the capitol city, and as a publisher, I got to talk with the state's governor, legislators and senators," he says. "So not only did I get the opportunity to run the organization, but I learned a lot about government at the same time. And I found that really exciting."
Mowbray remained in Bismarck until 2002 then moved to Lee's corporate office as national vice president for sales and marketing. In 2004 he added the responsibility of publisher of the The Times in Northwest Indiana and oversaw nine other Lee newspapers as an operating vice president for Lee. Then in January 2005, Lee announced its plan to purchase Pulitzer Inc., which included not only the Post-Dispatch,
but also STLtoday.com, the Suburban Journals of Greater St. Louis and STL Distribution Services. Mowbray stepped in as president and publisher in May 2006, adding the St. Louis operations to his already impressive list of responsibilities. He continues to oversee The Times of Northwest Indiana and serves as an elected corporate officer of Lee.
"It may appear daunting, but I'm a get-it-done kind of guy. Plus I'm passionate about the industry and the Post-Dispatch," he comments. "This is a terrific newspaper, with a very strong heritage. And we're going to take advantage of our strong assets so we can continue to grow."
Of course, not everyone feels as strongly about the future of either the Post-Dispatch or the newspaper business in general. With technology as it is, many believe that newspapers are a thing of the past. Mowbray emphatically disagrees.
"I hear people say, 'Oh, the Post-Dispatch is a minor shell of its former self.' Well, that's just not the case," he says. "And I'm going to tell anyone who will listen."
The Post-Dispatch and STLtoday.com have the second best reach of any newspaper/web combination in the top 25 markets. The Post-Dispatch has a circulation of 277,000 daily and 421,000 Sunday. The Suburban Journals reach 475,500 adults each issue through 31 publications. In addition, a weekly advertising package, Local Values, reaches over 996,000 households a week.
"So we've got the number one media in town in both print and online. We have the second highest penetration of any major metro (only behind the Washington Post). The Suburban Journals have the largest reach of any weekly newspaper group in America. And Local Values is vying for the dominate direct mail vehicle of choice in the St. Louis area," Mowbray adds. "And that's not just me making things up. It's all based on independent research. So, I think things are looking pretty good."
Mowbray says the newspaper business has changed with the times and that's why it's still a viable source of information. Prior to the Internet, the readers were "stuck with print." If breaking news occurred they had to wait until the next day's edition to get the story out. And that's where broadcast media had the advantage. But today, newspapers like the Post are making good use of the Internet. And as a result, the tables are turning in their favor.
"We're a 24/7 news organization now," he says. "Between the Journals and the Post-Dispatch, we've got a very large news gathering organization to cover things. And we've armed our reporters and photographers with digital equipment, so now we can put video reports on our website immediately."
A good example is the Kirkwood City Hall shooting back in February. Two reporters—one from the Post-Dispatch and the other from the Suburban Journals—were actually in City Hall during the incident. As a result, a video report was almost immediately uploaded to the STLtoday website. Mowbray notes they received 2.5 million page views the first hour it appeared.
"We never could have done that before. But that's one of the strengths of newspapers and why I'm so bullish on our industry," he says. "We have the ability to post local news as fast, if not the fastest locally. But we also have the advantage that once we've posted it—done our due diligence to our readers
by telling something has happened—then, we've got the opportunity to sit back and gather all the facts and put it together in a thoughtful way. So we have the best of both worlds. And this really creates an amazing opportunity for us and our readers."
And it seems Mowbray is making the most of it. Since taking over as publisher, fifteen websites—one for each of the Suburban Journals—were launched with great success. More recently was the launch of the Ladue News website, which Mowbray says will have a social networking component tied to it. Best Bridal, a product owned by the Post-Dispatch, is also launching a social networking application on its website.
"This will allow consumers the opportunity to talk not only with one another, but with advertisers and experts in the field," Mowbray says. "We may be one of the first to innovate in this way."
In April, STLtoday.com underwent a massive redesign, bringing more opportunities for interactivity including more forums and blogs, as well as community generated video. There is also an opportunity for real-time feedback on a story, which can then be run in the next day's newspaper. Mowbray says it's this continual reworking and relaunching that's made them a dominant local online news source.
"And that's what I really like about working at the Post and for Lee Enterprises," he comments. "We identified the threat and the opportunity, and then jumped on it to make sure we had the dominant news source online. And IÕm very proud of it."
As publisher of the Post-Dispatch, Mowbray serves on a variety of local boards including the RCGA, RBC, Variety Club, Mathews Dickey, Arts and Education Council and United Way. He says one thing he's learned being in St. Louis and serving on these boards is that St. Louisans are passionate about their newspaper.
"They tell me what they like and what they'd like to see," he comments. "And I listen, because I've learned that, whether you're the most experienced person in the room or the least experienced, the one with the best listening skills is the one who's going to benefit the most. That's because it's the diversity of thought and opinion that will help you be successful. I think that's not only critical to the success of the Post-Dispatch and my own personal success, but I think it's also critical for the success of the City of St. Louis."
And considering the upturn St. Louis has taken, Mowbray says he believes St. Louis officials are listening.
"Competition for economic prosperity is more fierce than it's ever been. We're competing with cities all over the global economy. And I'm very impressed with the leadership we have out there and what they are doing to put St. Louis on the map," he says. "And I think St. Louis is a great place to live and do business. It's a regional hub for transportation, and home to some top-notch healthcare. And we've got a downtown that's on the upswing, not to mention some terrific sports franchises. The bottom line is that we've got really strong business organizations and top-notch quality people that are passionate about making
St. Louis a great place to live. So I think
St. Louis, like the Post-Dispatch, has a great future ahead of it. And that's exciting." |
