Valentine has been on the fast track
since his first news director job in
Evansville (Ind.) at age 27. Belo Corp.
saw major upside in Valentine and
shifted him from its Norfolk (Va.) station’s
newsroom to VP of news at its flagship in Dallas, where WFAA racked
up mega-bling for its rock-solid investigative work, including Peabody
Awards, national Murrows and a batch of duPont-Columbia silver batons.
Belo thought enough of Valentine to create a corporate role for him.
Last month, he jumped across the street to HQ, where he will work
with the news directors in the company’s 15 markets, spotting and
sharing best practices, upholding Belo’s high standards of journalism
and inspiring local news staffs with his enthusiasm. Perhaps more
important, Valentine will work out the model for future local news
gathering and distribution, including digital and social media. It’s a
big job for a big thinker.
