Replaces Jim McCarter, who resigned in February.
Staffers at Detroit’s Metro Times will answer to a new boss when David Jost settles into the publisher’s office May 2, replacing Jim McCarter, who resigned in February.
Having worked primarily in Minnesota’s Twin Cities area, Jost was chosen for the job during a nationwide search conducted by Metro Times ‘ parent company, Times Shamrock.
“I have gone through a long process looking for a publisher,” says Don Farley, group publisher for Times Shamrock’s alternative weekly group. “Out of the five final candidates, David was the best choice.”
While Farley would not elaborate on the circumstances surrounding McCarter’s resignation, he did say that he personally has filled McCarter’s shoes since his departure.
“Since February I’ve been commuting to Detroit from Baltimore. I’d spend half of the week in each city, as well as visiting the other papers in our group. I really took my time to find someone who could mesh with the staff there and mesh with me as well. David can do both.”
Jost cut his teeth in 1991 working for Minneapolis’ City Pages, where he held a variety of positions, including national advertising manager. He left City Pages in 1996 to work as advertising director for CityBusiness, a business journal in Minneapolis. Having recently earned his MBA in Strategic Management and Marketing at the University of Minnesota, Jost was ready to get back into the alternative weekly industry.
“Seeing all that’s happened to alternative weeklies and to Metro Times lately, it’s an exciting time to be at Metro Times and in the alternative weekly industry,” Jost says.
Neither Jost nor Farley has any specific changes in mind for the 20-year-old paper.
“Metro Times has a really strong history,” says Jost. “Of course, I want to build on that, but I mostly want to continue doing what they’re doing while looking for opportunities to grow.”
In addition to his MBA, Jost, 35, was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma, an honor given to top business school graduates. He has more than 12 years’ experience in media management, marketing, and business development, including a three-year stint at WCCO-TV in Minneapolis, a CBS affiliate.
Times Shamrock, a Pennsylvania-based company, owns four alternative weeklies: Detroit’s Metro Times, Orlando Weekly, the San Antonio Current, and the Baltimore City Paper. The company also owns a number of daily and shopper newspapers and 10 radio stations.
