Rudi Alcott named publisher of The Daily Herald in Everett

The Daily Herald in Everett gets a new publisher.

But the current one won’t be far.

Rudi Alcott, who heads Sound Publishing’s King County Newspaper Group and is vice president of advertising for the company, will become editor of the Daily Herald on September 7th. He will be the tenth publisher in the newspaper’s 120-year history.

Alcott will succeed Josh O’Connor, editor of Sound Publishing since May 2013 and President of Sound Publishing since 2018. The demands on the management of the 350-employee company reached a point at which he had the feeling that he was no longer able to take the time required for the contribution of Herold-Verlag.

“It has been a personal and professional privilege to be part of the Everett Herald,” said O’Connor, who intends to keep his Everett office and continue to advocate for community organizations. “I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved and the overall direction of the business.”

Alcott is responsible for the daily operation of 14 digital and print products. He made a name for himself in digital sales with sound and was the company’s first Director of Digital Revenue. It is the first time he is running a daily newspaper.

“I consider The Herald to be the signature flagship sound publishing paper,” he said. “I’m looking forward to this challenge and to being part of the great team up there and continuing the great work.”

At The Herald, Alcott will focus on driving audience development and accelerating the newspaper’s digital transformation. But a printed newspaper will continue to appear seven days a week for the foreseeable future, he said.

He wants to develop an “all-in-one” strategy aimed at reaching readers where they want their messages most, whether in print or on their phone, laptop or other device.

“I don’t care where people get their information from. I just make sure they get it from us, ”he said. “We developed a roadmap under Josh. I would like to build on this roadmap. ”

Alcott lives in Covington with his wife and three dogs – although the five are expecting future relocation to Snohomish County. Her adult son and daughter work in the aerospace and education sectors in Washington.

Alcott, 53, was born in Compton, California. He grew up mainly in Indiana, with a time in Colorado. He began his professional career in Fort Wayne, Indiana, as the sales manager for the house accounts of Ellison Bakery, then the maker of Archway cookies. The parent company was Darlington Farms.

After moving to Washington in 1997, he entered the newspaper industry. He spent a decade at Horvitz Newspapers, overseeing circulation development, then for a brief period at Swift Communications in Greeley, Colorado, as assistant circulation manager. He returned to Washington and joined Sound as editor of the Federal Way Mirror, where he later took on the same role for the Enumclaw Courier-Herald.

In Federal Way, the city guides awarded him a Key to the City in recognition of his civic service and as the longest-serving editor of the Mirror.

In February 2020, he was named Vice President of Advertising for Sound Publishing.

Shortly afterwards, COVID-19 arrived in full force. When the retail sector closed, sound publishing revenues dwindled. In order to survive the turbulence, there were layoffs and leave of absence of employees and the suspension of some publications.

In the past few months, an improving economy has helped Sound and The Herald get back on their feet financially. At The Herald, community-funded investigative and environmental reporting initiatives enable the in-depth, topic-oriented coverage that readers seek.

“We’re experiencing the most transformative phase in our history – we’re growing and delivering award-winning journalism in innovative ways,” said O’Connor. “I am delighted to hand over the baton to Rudi, who has the skills that the company needs today.”

Sound Publishing produces dozen of print and digital products in Washington and Alaska. These include community weeklies, daily newspapers (including The Daily Herald), and bi-weekly newspapers in Snohomish, Iceland, San Juan, King, Kitsap, Grays Harbor, and Okanogan counties, and the Olympic Peninsula.