Lincoln, St. Louis Publishers Add Corporate Classified Sales Roles

October 12, 2015

DAVENPORT, Iowa--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 12, 2015-- Lee Enterprises (NYSE: LEE), a leading provider of news, information and advertising in 50 markets, has expanded the roles of two of its top publishers to include companywide responsibilities for sales in key categories.

Lincoln Journal Star publisher Ava Thomas has been named senior sales executive for automotive and will provide leadership for driving automotive advertising across Lee. Ray Farris, publisher of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, will also serve as senior sales executive for classified and will oversee classified sales, including employment and real estate, for all Lee properties.

“These appointments will further sharpen our focus on advertising revenue and operational excellence,” said Mary Junck, Lee president and chief executive officer. “Ava and Ray are talented executives with vast experience and proven success in these areas of classified sales. Bringing their expertise to the corporate level is a great opportunity for us as we look to drive results in these categories across all Lee markets.

“We’re excited to have them in place as we kick off the first quarter of our fiscal year and expect 2016 to be another year of strong free cash flow and excellent operating margins for Lee.”

Thomas joined Lee Enterprises in 1995 and has held several leadership positions at the Lincoln Journal Star, including online sales manager, classified sales manager, classified advertising manager, advertising director and general manager before being named publisher in 2014.

“While the car-buying process has changed dramatically in recent years, the dealers’ need to reach local audiences remains the same, and Lee has many new tools to help dealers connect with buyers in their markets,” Thomas said. “I spent many years working directly with auto dealers across the midwest, and I’m excited by the opportunity to bring my experience to an already outstanding automotive sales team.”

Farris has been publisher of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch since 2013. He joined the company in 2006 as vice president of classified advertising. In 2009 he was promoted to vice president of advertising and was appointed general manager in 2010. Prior to joining Lee, Farris was vice president of classified advertising for the Detroit News and Detroit Free Press.

“Our broad platform of print and digital classified products remains a highly effective tool to help advertisers get their message to the local community,” Farris said. “I am eager to begin working with the management at our other properties to best position these products to produce positive results for our advertisers and, in turn, strengthen classified for Lee.”

ABOUT LEE

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 1.0 million daily and 1.4 million Sunday, reaching more than three million readers in print alone. Lee's markets include St. Louis, MO; Lincoln, NE; Madison, WI; Davenport, IA; Billings, MT; Bloomington, IL; and Tucson, AZ. Lee Common Stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol LEE. For more information about Lee, please visit www.lee.net.

Source: Lee Enterprises

Lee Enterprises
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