Emilio Garcia-Ruiz is The Washington Post’s new managing editor in charge of “digital initiatives and operations, video, the presentation departments of photo, graphics, and design, and the multiplatform editing desk.” Executive Editor Marty Baron made the announcmement to staffers today. Here’s the announcement:
The Washington Post today announced Emilio Garcia-Ruiz has been named managing editor for The Washington Post. He will be responsible for digital initiatives and operations, video, the presentation departments of photo, graphics, and design, and the multiplatform editing desk.
In this position, Garcia-Ruiz will be responsible for driving innovation in the newsroom across all digital platforms and will be the newsroom’s primary liaison with the business side on all digital efforts. He was previously The Post’s digital strategy editor.
Garcia-Ruiz will work closely with Kevin Merida, managing editor in charge of news and features coverage and the Universal News Desk.
“As editor for strategic projects for the past two and a half years, Emilio has been immersed in our digital efforts across all platforms,” said Martin Baron, Executive Editor, The Washington Post. “He was instrumental in bringing the embedded developer team to the newsroom, a move that helped The Post emerge as an industry leader in innovation, releasing more than a dozen new digital products in the past year. He also brings to this position deep and impressive experience as a journalist and a newsroom leader, a background that has allowed him to work intimately with photography, design, graphics, and the full range of editors and reporters. ”
Garcia-Ruiz began his career at The Post in 1987 as a night copy editor in Sports and was later promoted to Night Sports Editor and High School Sports Editor. He left in 1990 and spent the next 11 years at the Orange County Register, the Los Angeles Times and the St. Paul Pioneer Press. As the sports editor of the Minnesota paper, he directed the Pulitzer prize-winning investigation of academic fraud in the University of Minnesota men’s basketball program.
He returned to The Post as an assistant sports editor in 2001 and was named sports editor in 2003. In 2008, he became Local editor, leading the merger of the digital and print staffs while producing award-winning coverage of major local stories.
Garcia-Ruiz is a native of Washington, D.C., and a graduate of the University of Maryland.
Here’s Baron’s note to staff:
I am pleased to announce that Emilio Garcia-Ruiz will become The Post’s managing editor with oversight of digital initiatives and operations, video, the presentation departments of photo, graphics, and design, and the multiplatform editing desk.
In this position, Emilio will be responsible for driving innovation in the newsroom across all digital platforms and for assuring that we have the skills, sensibilities, and practices necessary for success in a digital era. He also will be the newsroom’s primary liaison with the business side on all digital efforts.
Emilio will work closely with Kevin Merida, managing editor in charge of news and features coverage and the Universal News Desk. Since his appointment as managing editor earlier this year, Kevin has put digital success at the top of his agenda.
We have a very strong newsroom leadership team.
As editor for strategic projects for the past 2 ½ years, Emilio has been immersed in our digital efforts across all platforms. He was instrumental in bringing the embedded developer team to the newsroom, a move that helped The Post emerge as an industry leader in innovation, releasing more than a dozen new digital products in the past year.
Emilio also improved the newsroom’s relationship with the technology and advertising departments, fostering constructive partnerships. Of late, he has been working with the team building the metered model. And most recently, he led a task force to assess our digital performance and outline opportunities for progress. We will be moving briskly to implement many of its recommendations.
Emilio also brings to this position deep and impressive experience as a journalist and a newsroom leader, a background that has allowed him to work intimately with photography, design, graphics, and the full range of editors and reporters.
A Washington, D.C., native, and a graduate of the University of Maryland, Emilio began his career at The Post in 1987 as a night copy editor in Sports and was later promoted to Night Sports Editor and High School Sports Editor. He left in 1990 and spent the next 11 years at the Orange County Register, the Los Angeles Times and the St. Paul Pioneer Press. As the sports editor of the Minnesota paper, he directed the Pulitzer prize-winning investigation of academic fraud in the University of Minnesota men’s basketball program.
He returned to The Post as an assistant sports editor in 2001 and was named sports editor in 2003. In 2008, he became Local editor, leading the merger of the digital and print staffs while producing award-winning coverage of two Snowmaggedons, the Red Line crash and the Holocaust Museum shootings.
Emilio also takes justifiable pride in hiring some of the newsroom’s top young reporting talent.
The Post has made huge strides in the digital transformation of its newsroom. There remains much to do. Given the vigor of our competitors, fast-changing consumer habits, and the rush of new technologies, there is no time for delay.
I look forward to working with Emilio and Kevin to move us forward quickly.
Marty
Related: Kevin Merida named managing editor of The Washington Post
