Cardinal News has hired Luanne Rife as its executive director and chief development officer.
Rife, a co-founder of Cardinal, will manage the business and fundraising side of Cardinal News, duties she has been performing as a volunteer.
“We knew at the outset that the day would arrive when Cardinal would need a dedicated employee to perform this vital work. We’ve reached that pivot point due to the fast pace of growth,” Rife said.
She has resigned from the board of directors to assume this part-time paid role, effective immediately. The board has elected Caroline Glickman, retired editor at The (Lynchburg) News & Advance and The Roanoke Times, as president.
“Luanne is a dedicated and caring journalist whose deep commitment to the mission of Cardinal News already has yielded extraordinary success,” Glickman said. “There is no one better suited to be our first executive director and chief development officer guiding Cardinal on its path to long-term sustainability.”
Cardinal News is an online independent, nonpartisan news site that serves Southwest and Southside Virginia. It is based on the public broadcasting model and relies solely on donations and grants from individuals, corporations and foundations, and publishes the names of all donors on its website.
Cardinal maintains a firewall between its donors and its content. Executive Editor Dwayne Yancey will continue to manage the journalists and content of Cardinal News.
The creation of the executive editor and chief development officer position further separates the functions to allow for complete editorial independence.