1st Black editor named to lead Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Mar 23, 2023, 8:54 AM

Leroy Chapman Jr., the new editor of The Atlanta-Journal Constitution, is shown in this undated pho...

Leroy Chapman Jr., the new editor of The Atlanta-Journal Constitution, is shown in this undated photo. The newspaper named Chapman its new top editor Thursday, March 29, 2023, making him the first Black editor to lead the Journal-Constitution in its 155-year history. (Tyson Horne/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)
Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS

(Tyson Horne/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Thursday named Leroy Chapman Jr. as its new editor-in-chief, making him the first Black editor to lead the newspaper in its 155-year history.

Chapman, 52, has worked in journalism for nearly three decades and has spent the past 12 years at the Journal-Constitution, serving as its managing editor since 2021. Publisher Andrew Morse said he’s proud that the newspaper found the best person for the job within its own ranks.

“There’s truly nobody better suited to lead this newsroom,” Morse said in an interview, adding: “He has the respect of the newsroom, he is an innovative thinker, and he has the highest journalistic standard that you could image.”

Chapman will take charge of a news staff that serves more than 125,000 print and digital subscribers as well as about 6 million unique online monthly visitors, according to figures provided by the newspaper. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is owned by Cox Enterprises, a privately held company.

The newspaper traces its history to 1868, when the Atlanta Constitution published its first edition three years after the Civil War ended. One of its most storied editors, Ralph McGill, wrote columns in the 1940s and 1950s that openly criticized racial inequality, eliciting fury and threats from segregationists.

Morse, who became the newspaper’s publisher in January, said it’s significant that the Journal-Constitution will have a Black editor-in-chief in a city known for its diversity. Black people make up 48% of Atlanta’s population, more than any other racial group. And its sprawling metropolitan area has the second-highest number of Black-owned businesses in America, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

A native of Greenville, South Carolina, Chapman grew up just one generation removed from the segregated South his father and grandfathers knew. His family tree, he said, can be traced “back to colonial America where we were on census reports as property.”

“To now lead a newsroom, which is an important organization in an important American city, and being able to write the first draft of history is an extraordinary moment for my family,” Chapman said. “When I got into newspapers back in 1994 with my first reporting job, I don’t think even my wild imagination would say I’d be sitting in this seat someday.”

Chapman arrived at the Journal-Constitution in 2011 as a front-page story editor and worked his way up to managing editor, the No. 2 newsroom leader, over the next decade. He takes the helm at a challenging time for a newspaper industry that has been steadily shrinking, with regional and local newspapers struggling to find robust online audiences to compensate for advertisers shifting from print to digital.

Morse credited Chapman with playing a critical role at the Journal-Constitution in guiding news coverage on major stories such as an investigation into a critical affordable housing shortage in Atlanta and attempts by former President Donald Trump and his allies to overturn Georgia’s 2020 election results. In his new job, Chapman will oversee teams responsible for expanded digital offerings such as emailed newsletters and a true-crime podcast, Breakdown, that’s now in its ninth season.

Before coming to Atlanta, Chapman worked in South Carolina as a government editor at The State newspaper in Columbia and as a columnist and editorial writer at The Greenville News.

He succeeds Kevin Riley, who plans to retire later this year. Riley will remain at the newspaper during a transition period as editor-at-large.

United States News

Associated Press

San Francisco police: 9 victims hit but no deaths in Mission District mass shooting

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Multiple victims were struck by bullets during a mass shooting in San Francisco’s Mission District Friday night, but authorities said there were no fatalities. “We can confirm there are 9 shooting victims — all are expected to survive their injuries,” the San Francisco Police Department said in a tweet. Police said […]

5 hours ago

FILE - Cameron Champ, of the United States, hits out of a bunker on the ninth hole during the Walke...

Associated Press

Beverly Hills-adjacent golf club opens doors to world with U.S. Open

LOS ANGELES (AP) — For much of the past century, the Los Angeles Country Club was quite literally a hidden gem. While Los Angeles grew from a warm-weather outpost into a global metropolis, this picturesque golf club sat in one of the city’s most dazzling settings — 325 acres of multibillion-dollar real estate adjoining Beverly […]

1 day ago

Seen is the damage from a collapsed apartment building, Monday, June 5, 2023, in Davenport, Iowa. T...

Associated Press

Cracked floors, bowed walls: Many warnings but no action at Iowa building before deadly collapse

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — So many people knew something wasn’t right at the 116-year-old Davenport apartment building. The structural engineer who documented the shaky wall. The head of a masonry company who wouldn’t let his workers onto the site. The city inspector who threatened to close some units. A downtown official who called 911 […]

1 day ago

One of several cameras set up to capture live debate in the chamber of the Nebraska Legislature is ...

Associated Press

Nebraska Legislature as reality TV, featuring filibuster and culture war drama

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Mention televised legislative debates, and what may come to mind are stuffy, policy-wonk discussions broadcast by C-SPAN. This year’s Nebraska Legislature was more like a reality TV show, with culture-war rhetoric, open hostility among lawmakers, name-calling, yelling and more. Many Nebraskans couldn’t get enough of it. “It was addictive,” said Jamie […]

1 day ago

Drag performer Neon Calypso, center, sings and dances to Tina Turner's version of the song "Proud M...

Associated Press

Pride is back in Boston as parade returns after quarrel over inclusivity

BOSTON (AP) — The biggest Pride parade in New England returns to Boston after a three-year hiatus Saturday, with a fresh focus on social justice and inclusion rather than corporate backing. About 10,000 marchers signed up before registration was shut down, according to organizers. Employee groups are welcome to march, but corporations aren’t. “We really […]

1 day ago

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy of Calif., leaves his office on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday,...

Associated Press

Trump’s GOP defenders in Congress leap into action on charges after months of preparation

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump’s indictment on charges of mishandling classified documents is set to play out in a federal court in Florida. But hundred of miles away, part of Trump’s defense is well underway in a different venue — the halls of Congress, where Republicans have been preparing for months to wage […]

1 day ago

Sponsored Articles

...

Desert Institute for Spine Care

Spinal fusion surgery has come a long way, despite misconceptions

As Dr. Justin Field of the Desert Institute for Spine Care explained, “we've come a long way over the last couple of decades.”

(Photo: OCD & Anxiety Treatment Center)...

OCD & Anxiety Treatment Center

Here’s what you need to know about OCD and where to find help

It's fair to say that most people know what obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders generally are, but there's a lot more information than meets the eye about a mental health diagnosis that affects about one in every 100 adults in the United States.

...

Day & Night Air Conditioning, Heating and Plumbing

Company looking for oldest air conditioner and wants to reward homeowner with new one

Does your air conditioner make weird noises or a burning smell when it starts? If so, you may be due for an AC unit replacement.

1st Black editor named to lead Atlanta Journal-Constitution