Christopher Dolan to become The Washington Times’ next president

After an extensive national search, The Washington Times is promoting from within, naming longtime newsroom stalwart and Executive Editor Christopher Dolan as the next president of The Washington Times, effective Jan. 1.

Mr. Dolan, a third-generation newspaperman who joined The Times’ newsroom 18 years ago as a national desk editor, will succeed Larry Beasley as president, overseeing the organization’s day-to-day operations.

Mr. Beasley, who will remain as The Times’ chief executive officer, praised Mr. Dolan’s newsroom leadership, running The Times’ coverage for both the newspaper and its award-winning website while navigating a sharp economic downturn and a string of disruptions that have rocked the news industry.

“Over the past six years, The Times has made great strides at stabilizing its financial condition despite a turbulent media market, and I am grateful for your tireless efforts,” Mr. Beasley said in a letter Monday to Washington Times employees. “Chris’ leadership has contributed greatly to our mission and, as a result, I have decided, with the approval of the TWT Board, that he is the right person to help me lead The Times into a new and exciting future.”

Mr. Dolan will retain his role as The Times’ top editor.

“I’m very honored to have been given this assignment, and I’m grateful to the reporters and editors who do important work here every day — often under trying circumstances,” Mr. Dolan said.

Despite the pressures that have buffeted the industry in recent years, The Times continues to put out a general-interest print newspaper and a daily selection of hard-hitting conservative opinion while operating a 24/7 digital-first reporting platform with breaking news and influential analysis.

That commitment to thorough reporting presented fairly was recognized in a recent Simmons Research survey of the most trusted news sources in America.

The survey put The Washington Times among the top five most trusted newspapers in the country, while its website was ranked 10th in trustworthiness among all media platforms, including radio, television and online news sites.

“Chris deserves a lot of credit for that honor,” Mr. Beasley said.

Having brought new stability to an expanding newsroom, Mr. Dolan as president will be spearheading a number of initiatives on the editorial and business sides to expand The Times’ reach and influence.

Among them: a planned new subscription model for the website to generate revenue; a new national advertising campaign; and partnerships with other media outlets to help expand The Times’ readership, its commitment to fair-minded reporting, and its geographic reach across the country and around the globe.

“Millions of readers visit our site in search of uncompromising, reliable, factual reporting along with insightful and non-mainstream opinion …,” Mr. Beasley said in his letter to Times employees. “Chris will continue to be a champion of unbiased news and civilly expressed, conservative commentary.”

Deborah Simmons, who has been a reporter, columnist and editor since joining The Washington Times in 1985, said Mr. Dolan has brought solid management and leadership skills to every post he has held in the newsroom.

“Chris stands upright, a posture any solid news guy or gal would want for their leader,” Ms. Simmons said. “He’s unfazed when all hell breaks loose daily, seemingly daily, in Washington these days. He makes sure we all stay in our own lanes and that we don’t become the story — something too many members of the media these days want to do.”

Mr. Dolan joined The Washington Times as an assistant national editor in 2001 just a month before the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington.

Since then, he has held several newsroom positions, including Capitol Hill bureau chief, assistant managing editor and managing editor.

Before joining The Times, Mr. Dolan held reporting and editing positions at The Times-Picayune in New Orleans, The Oregonian in Portland, Oregon, The Sun Coast Media Group in Florida, and The Journal Newspapers in suburban Washington.

A Long Island native, Mr. Dolan graduated from Lehigh University in 1992, majoring in journalism. He and his wife, Lydia, have one son, Peter, and one daughter, Celeste.