Lee Honors Arizona Daily Star as Enterprise of the Year

November 11, 2013

DAVENPORT, Iowa--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 11, 2013-- Lee Enterprises, Incorporated (NYSE:LEE) announced today that the Arizona Daily Star is being honored as 2013 Enterprise of the Year.

“Publisher John Humenik and his team delivered amazing results across the board,” said Mary Junck, Lee chairman and chief executive officer. “They drove double-digit digital growth, double-digit growth in cash flow, double-digit growth in Sunday circulation units and mobile audience numbers that fly off the charts. As always, they also produced an endless stream of outstanding journalism, from human interest stories that touch the heart to investigative journalism that helps make the community stronger.”

Kevin Mowbray, Lee vice president and chief operating officer, added: “The Tucson team delivered on every top Lee initiative – and they shared their own impressive successes across the company. As an example, they’re leading the way in gaining more grocery advertising and they’ve set a high bar for growing preprints. Their Thanksgiving Day paper this year will include 70 local preprints.”

The Arizona Daily Star also received 2013 President’s Awards for both News and Innovation – for a series on Tucson children in poverty and for a captivating promotion, Pizza Madness. This is the second year in a row that the Arizona Daily Star has been a finalist for Enterprise of the Year.

Lee owns the Arizona Daily Star, and its business operations are owned jointly with Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI). The web address is azstarnet.com.

Junck also praised six other finalists for the company’s top award:

  • The Sentinel in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. The Sentinel’s web address is cumberlink.com. The publisher is Mark Heintzelman.
  • The Post-Star in Glens Falls, New York, also a winner of a 2013 Lee President’s Award for news and Lee’s 2007 Enterprise of the Year. The Post-Star’s web address is poststar.com. The publisher is Rick Emanuel.
  • Times Media Company of Northwest Indiana, based in Munster, also the 2010 Enterprise of the Year and a finalist in 2012. The Times’ web address is nwitimes.com. The publisher is Chris White.
  • Sioux City Journal in Sioux City, Iowa, also a 2007 Enterprise of the Year Finalist. The Sioux City Journal’s web address is siouxcityjournal.com. The publisher is Ron Peterson.
  • St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the 2012 Enterprise of the Year and a finalist in 2010, as well as winner of 2013 Lee President Awards for news and innovation. The web address for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is stltoday.com. The publisher is Ray Farris.
  • Courier Communications in Waterloo/Cedar Falls, Iowa, also a 2011 Enterprise of the Year Finalist and a 2013 Lee President’s Award for Spirit. The web address for The Courier is wcfcourier.com. The publisher is David Braton.

Lee Enterprises is a leading provider of local news and information, and a major platform for advertising, in its markets, with 46 daily newspapers and a joint interest in four others, rapidly growing digital products and nearly 300 specialty publications in 22 states. Lee's newspapers have circulation of 1.2 million daily and 1.4 million Sunday, reaching nearly four million readers in print alone. Lee's websites and mobile and tablet products attracted 23.2 million unique visitors in September 2013. Other Lee markets include Lincoln, NE; Madison, WI; Davenport, IA; Billings, MT; and Bloomington, IL. Lee Common Stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol LEE. For more information about Lee, please visit lee.net.

Source: Lee Enterprises

Lee Enterprises
Dan Hayes, 563-383-2100
Dan.Hayes@lee.net