Chris Coates (journalist)
Chris Coates is an American journalist, editor and media executive. He is currently Senior Director - Local News at Lee Enterprises, where he leads strategy, audience growth and newsroom operations across more than 70 markets. Coates has held editorial leadership roles in newsrooms across the United States.[1][2]
Early life and education
Coates was born in Trenton, Michigan. He graduated from Trenton High School[3]and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in broadcast journalism from Columbia College Chicago in 2004. He served as editor-in-chief of The Columbia Chronicle, the college's student newspaper.[4]
Career
Early reporting
Coates began his journalism career at the Los Angeles Downtown News in 2004, where he covered real estate and urban development.[5] He later worked at the San Fernando Valley Business Journal in Woodland Hills, California, covering biotech, health care and California government.[6]
From 2007 to 2011, he worked as a reporter at the Suburban Journals of Greater St. Louis, where he was promoted to managing editor of its Illinois publications.[7]
Sioux City Journal
In 2011, Coates became editor of the Sioux City Journal in Iowa.[8] His tenure focused on digital strategy and public-service journalism. He was named one of Editor & Publisher's 25 Under 35 in 2013, and the paper won General Excellence Awards from the National Newspaper Association in both 2013 and 2015.[9] He was also named a Chamberlin Fellow by the Greenlee School of Journalism at Iowa State University in 2014.[10]
USA Today Network
From 2015 to 2016, Coates worked as a Watchdog Content Coach at The News Journal in Delaware, part of the USA Today Network. He led investigative journalism initiatives and was profiled by Editor & Publisher for his editorial leadership.
Lee Enterprises
In 2017, Coates was appointed executive editor of the Herald & Review in Decatur, Illinois. Under his leadership, the publication was named one of Editor & Publisher's 10 Newspapers That Do It Right in 2019.[11] He was later named Central Illinois Editor for Lee Enterprises, overseeing The Bloomington Pantagraph and other newsrooms. That same year, he was named Illinois Editor of the Year by the Illinois Press Association.[12]
In 2022, Coates became executive editor of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Richmond, Virginia.[13] The following year, he was promoted to Virginia State Editor, overseeing 11 Virginia-based publications including The Roanoke Times, The Daily Progress and The Free Lance-Star. In December 2023, he was promoted to Senior Director - Local News for Lee Enterprises, where he leads newsroom and digital strategy.[14]
Boards and organizations
Coates has served on the boards or committees of the Virginia Press Association, the Illinois Associated Press Media Editors and the Capitol News Illinois advisory board.[15][16] He has also led training through the News Leaders Association's NewsTrain,[17] Virginia Press Association, Illinois Press Association, Online Media Campus and the New York Press Association.[18]
He has served as a judge for national journalism awards, including the Online News Association Awards, Editor & Publisher's EPPY Awards, Report for America and Best of Gannett Awards of Excellence.
Coates was named to Editor & Publisher's Editors Extraordinaire list in 2024.[19] He also serves on the Society of Professional Journalists Journalism Education Committee.[20]
References
- ↑ "Richmond Times-Dispatch editor named senior director-local news by Lee Enterprises - Virginia Press Association". Virginia Press Association -. December 27, 2023.
- ↑ Schultz, Ray. "Chris Coates Named Virginia State Editor By Lee Enterprises".
- ↑ "Wedding: Doerge/Coates".
- ↑ Lee, Myer. "Chronicle, Columbia alum Chris Coates awarded Editor of the Year in Illinois". The Columbia Chronicle.
- ↑ Coates, Chris. "The outsider". Los Angeles Downtown News.
- ↑ Times-Dispatch, Staff | Richmond (February 23, 2022). "Award-winning journalist Chris Coates named Richmond Times-Dispatch executive editor". Editor and Publisher.
- ↑ "Coates named managing editor of Illinois Journals". STLtoday.com. January 11, 2011.
- ↑ "Future of Newspapers and Politics". CSPAN.
- ↑ "NNA awards General Excellence winners in 2013 newspaper contests". www.nna.org.
- ↑ Coates, Chris. "Honored to serve as Chamberlin fellow".
- ↑ Yang, Nu; Mateos, Evelyn (March 4, 2019). "10 Newspapers That Do It Right 2019: Honoring Innovative Revenue Strategies, Impactful Journalism and Creative Audience Growth". Editor and Publisher.
- ↑ Lee, Myer. "Chronicle, Columbia alum Chris Coates awarded Editor of the Year in Illinois".
- ↑ "Award-winning journalist Chris Coates named Richmond Times-Dispatch executive editor". America's Newspapers.
- ↑ "Richmond Times-Dispatch's executive editor named state editor for Lee Enterprises - Virginia Press Association". Virginia Press Association -. June 9, 2023.
- ↑ "Coates named Illinois Associated Press Media Editors president".
- ↑ "A new effort boosts a diminished Illinois statehouse press". Columbia Journalism Review.
- ↑ "3 years in the making, Illinois NewsTrain exceeded expectations in many ways".
- ↑ "NYPS".
- ↑ reports, From staff (May 7, 2024). "Coates named one of national 'Editors Extraordinaire' by Editor & Publisher". Richmond Times-Dispatch.
- ↑ "Journalism Education Committee". Society of Professional Journalists.
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