Ellen Foley is stepping down as the top editor of the Wisconsin State Journal, ending a four-year tenure in which the newspaper strengthened its Internet journalism and refocused its coverage of Madison in the face of industry challenges.
James L. Baughman, director of the UW-Madison School of Journalism and Mass Communication, noted that Foley led the State Journal during a time in which newspapers around the country faced financial pressures and staff cuts as they struggled to hold onto their readers.
“She’s had to take chances that an editor 30 or 40 years ago wouldn’t have had to take,” he said.