John Paton named CEO of Journal Register Company.

Journal Register Company announced the appointment of John Paton as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Paton joins the Company from impreMedia LLC, where he has been Chairman, Chief Executive and President of the U.S. Hispanic media company that he co-founded in 2003. Former Univision Television Group COO – Mike Wortsman will be the interim CEO of Impremedia until a replacement for Mr. Paton is identified.

Mr. Paton, who is currently a member of the board of directors of Journal Register Company, has more than 30 years experience in newspapers and online media in the U.S., Canada and Europe. Over the last six years, Mr. Paton and his partners built impreMedia into the top news and information company in online and print serving the U.S. Hispanic community. In 2009, Editor & Publisher magazine recognized Mr. Paton for transforming what was a legacy news media organization into a modern multi-platform company by naming him “Publisher of the Year.” He was also named a “Media All-Star” by AdWeek magazine’s Marketing y Medios. Mr. Paton started in journalism as a copyboy and has been a reporter, a city editor, an assistant managing editor and an editor in chief before moving to the business side of newspapers. He has been the publisher of two daily newspapers and the vice president of Sun Media, now Canada’s largest newspaper company, and chief executive of www.canoe.com as well as a board member of public and privately-held media companies. Mr. Paton was recently appointed to the Board of Advisors of the City University of New York Graduate School of Journalism.

Joseph A. Ripp, Board Chairman, said, “John has a tremendous track record of transforming newspaper and media organizations to compete in today’s digital world and to meet the needs of local consumers and communities. He has been recognized as a visionary in the industry and we are confident that he will bring many new and exciting ideas and initiatives to reinvigorate Journal Register Company, engage and grow our audience, drive excellence in local journalism and improve overall financial performance.”

Mr. Paton said, “I am excited and honored to have the opportunity to work with the women and men of Journal Register Company to build on the proud heritage of our publications, some of which date back to the 1700s. They provide the kind of meaningful local journalism that helps inform and build communities all over this country.”

“The new tools of modern news creation and consumption, such as blogs, online video and mobile, are just that – the new tools. It is the journalism and commitment to covering communities that is important. I will be counting on the Company’s teams of seasoned journalists and entrepreneurial journalists in our communities to help us harness the power of these tools as we aggressively pursue multi-platforms to create a modern news company,” Mr. Paton said.