By Miles Layton

GREENVILLE — There’s been a changing of the guard – again – at The Daily Reflector, which affects many newspapers across eastern North Carolina.   

Adams Publishing Group announced Monday that Matt Guthrie has been named publisher of The Daily Reflector and regional president of Adams MultiMedia ENC. More about Guthrie’s bio in a moment, or you can read it here.    

Guthrie’s appointment follows a series of leadership transitions within the organization over the past several years in Greenville, which gives marching orders to publications including The Daily Advance, Chowan Herald, Perquimans Weekly, and other weeklies across eastern NC.

I apologize if I may be forgetting a publisher over the past eight years, but before Guthrie’s arrival, Michelle Bowers served as the regional president of APG-ENC and as the publisher of The Daily Reflector. She assumed the role in January of 2024, overseeing Adams Publishing Group’s operations throughout eastern North Carolina, including markets stretching from Elizabeth City to Rocky Mount and south to Duplin County.

Bowers succeeded longtime publishing executive Mark Cohen, who retired in January of 2024. About 16 months earlier, in August of 2022, Cohen had been appointed to lead the eastern North Carolina division after previously serving as publisher and president of Adams Publishing Group’s Ohio and Michigan operations.

Cohen brought more than three decades of experience to the position and had served at various leadership levels within the industry. Prior to joining Adams Publishing Group’s Ohio operations, he also served as president of the Pennsylvania Press Association, where he advocated for newspapers across the state. And I’ll say it — Mark was a good guy.  

Cohen’s appointment in eastern North Carolina followed the tenure of Robin Quillon, who joined Adams Publishing Group in August 2018 as regional president shortly after the company purchased the newspapers from Cooke Communications.

At the time of the acquisition, the eastern North Carolina operation was reportedly losing money. During his tenure, Quillon worked with his leadership team to reduce expenses while increasing revenue, particularly through expanded commercial printing operations. I liked Quillon.  

Quillon retired effective in August of 2022, paving the way for Cohen’s leadership and the subsequent transitions.

Guthrie is the fourth publisher since 2018 – and that doesn’t include John Cooke, owner and founder of Cooke Communications, who managed all these newspapers the family bought from Cox Enterprises in 2009. Prior to Cox, probably not many people remember the “before-before” times when the Whichard family owned The Daily Reflector — since 1882. I remember the days when the printing plant was downtown, before it was moved to that oversized modern office building on Sugg Parkway.  

With Guthrie now in place as publisher of The Daily Reflector and regional president of Adams MultiMedia ENC, the company enters another chapter in its leadership evolution as it continues overseeing newspapers and media operations across eastern North Carolina.

I’m cautiously optimistic about Guthrie’s chances in Eastern NC. That said, I know about the holes in the sinking ship that several publishers before Guthrie tried hard to plug — personalities and procedures that are unfortunately baked into the cake.  

Who is this guy?

Guthrie’s first management position came in eastern North Carolina, where he served as publisher and editor of the Roanoke Beacon in Plymouth, according to The Daily Reflector.  He later became publisher of the Delta Democrat Times in Greenville, Mississippi, where he further developed his experience in production and newspaper operations. Having lived and traveled in Mississippi, I know where Greenville is.  

Guthrie later joined Gatehouse Media and moved to the Dallas area to serve as regional vice president for the company’s southwest division. In that role, he oversaw approximately 60 publications across seven states and worked with 14 publishers.

Following Gatehouse Media’s merger with Gannett, Guthrie transitioned to the Gannett Publication Services division, where he oversaw distribution and manufacturing operations across seven states. After leaving Gannett, he stepped outside traditional publishing and served as chief operating officer of Audioengine, a boutique speaker company, according to The Daily Reflector.  In that position, he managed all aspects of the business, including manufacturing in China and global product delivery, whatever that means.

Mr. Guthrie, welcome back to eastern NC — good luck and watch your back!