On Jan. 1, Eliza Hussman Gaines became publisher of WEHCO Media, which owns the Chattanooga Times Free Press. She succeeded her father, Walter E. Hussman Jr., who remains chairman of the company. Gaines recently was in Chattanooga to meet with TFP leadership and staff and talk about her vision for the future of the company. The Q&A below has been edited for length.
TFP: How has your experience prepared you for your new role in WEHCO Media?
Gaines: I grew up in the newspaper industry. I'm the fourth generation in this. It's always been part of my life; I've just been surrounded by it.
I started as an intern in high school, and then I worked some in college during the summer. I was an English major and went back and got my master's degree in mass communication, with a focus on business and media. And then I started my career. I worked under my dad for a year and got to know the business.
TFP: Did you ever consider another career?
Gaines: I love to write. But it seemed kind of silly to be a writer and not write for a newspaper.
I was worried that if I were on the business side, I wouldn't be able to be creative. I have learned that you are kind of forced to be creative on the business side.
I was editor [of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette] right after COVID hit. The term I used for that experience is baptism by fire. I feel like I gained so much experience from that, just out of necessity. There wasn't time to simply take my time and learn all of the ins and outs.
But I always kind of knew I would do this.
I did think I would be on the editorial side for a little longer; 35 seems pretty young, but my dad was 27 when he took over the business.
TFP: Explain your philosophy about the role of newspapers in a community.
Gaines: Well, we are the watchdogs. In our communities, we are well-known, we are respected and trusted. We are known for accuracy. We are the ones who will really hold your government officials accountable and dig deeper into the very serious issues in your community and explain why they're happening. We cover the breaking news but also dig into why this is the way it is. That's extremely important.
TFP: What keeps you up at night?
Gaines: Understanding younger readers, what matters to them, their habits and their wants and their needs and how those are different from previous newspaper consumers. Understanding how they consume information, where and on which different platforms they want to get information, how to get younger readers to invest in their newspaper. It's an investment in their community, to see this is something that they do to make their community a better place.
Overall, just getting younger readers to see us as being on their side. It's their newspaper.
TFP: Newspapers' core readers have been older, the boomers, if you will, but that will change, is changing. Expand on how this challenges you in your new role.
Gaines: The younger generation, they are smart people. They do want the news. They want to know what's happening and why. I think they understand that a lot of news outlets are leaning one way or the other, but they want information straight. Younger audiences see right through news sources leaning this way or that, the echo chambers. They also are so socially conscious; if they feel like they're being lied to, or things are being withheld by government leaders, for example, they'll really like having a watchdog. I think we should perhaps promote ourselves more in that way.
Younger generation readers can be put off by the term "newspaper." It sounds old.
But we are more than that. We are not just a newspaper. We are a website, we are an iPad [digital replica edition]. We are newsletters and push notifications to phones. We provide the information you need but on different platforms -- however you want to access it.
TFP: The country is divided on many levels, and public trust in institutions, including media, has eroded. How can news sources like ours regain public trust?
Gaines: I think being very purposeful about what we do helps. Having our statement of core values is so important, having it prominently placed every day holds us accountable. Our readers know what they're getting and know we're doing our best to live up to these values.
We have a clear corrections policy: If we make a mistake we publish that. We are very clear about that.
We label everything that is opinion as opinion. There should be no confusion between news and opinion.
Occasionally, readers will write letters to the editor [to complain]. You know, someone who thinks our opinion pages are unfair. Well, you are not going to agree with everything that is on opinion pages. They are opinions; they are a person's opinion.
And finally, simply being open with readers. If they're upset about something where they feel like something was slanted, listening to them and understanding their concerns and taking that into consideration. I think that applies especially with wire copy.
I always tell readers who reach out to me that as publisher, I'm not in charge of the news or newsroom right now. I don't tell newsrooms what to write or what not to write. That's not my role.
TFP: WEHCO is a bit of an anomaly as a private, family-owned media company. How is family ownership important today?
Gaines: I hope that it's encouraging to people that someone my age is committed to the future of the newspaper, and that person is a member of the [ownership] family. I hope that people are encouraged that there will be a newspaper here for a very long time. It's not going anywhere. I'm committed to that. There are not many companies that have fourth-generation leaders, and hopefully this carries on to my kids.
I have four children. It's a lot! But that increases the chances of a fifth generation, too.
About Eliza Hussman Gaines
Title: Publisher of WEHCO Media, which owns and operates 10 newspapers in three states: Arkansas, Missouri and Tennessee
Age: 35
Education: Bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
Work: Executive editor of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette; managing editor of the ADG; WEHCO Media’s vice president of audience development; editor of the Sentinel-Record in Hot Springs, Ark.; travel reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle
Family: Spouse Alec Gaines, an attorney in Little Rock, Ark.; four children ages 8, 6, 4 and 1