Chapman takes over as general manager of The Recorder
Josie Chapman has definitely risen through the ranks of the company when it comes to the Porterville Recorder.
Chapman began as a paste up person 22 years ago with the Recorder. She has continued to work her way up and has now risen to become the General Manager of the Recorder.
She takes over as General Manager of the Recorder with the retirement of Bill Parsons as Recorder Publisher. Parsons will stay on with the Recorder to provide support for Chapman during the transition period.
Chapman began with the Recorder in the days when past up people were still used to actually paste the news pages together on boards before they went to the press.
“I had no intentions of this,” said Chapman about rising to the level she’s at now when she first began at the Recorder.
“I took a part-time job,” added Chapman about her first position at the Recorder. “I was tired of talking to a 2-year-old.”
Chapman went on to work in graphic design in advertising for the Recorder before going onto to become an advertising salesperson for the publication.
She went onto become the production manager, who’s the person who essentially produces the paper. As production manager, Chapman would decide how big the newspaper would be based on how much advertising sales there were.
Part of her job as production manager was also making sure the inserts that went into the Recorder were part of the newspaper on the right day.
Chapman also served as the Recorder’s advertising director before becoming the publications Director of Operations in which she oversaw the day-to-day operations of the paper. As part of that job, Chapman also essentially served as the circulation director working with the carriers.
It’s the reality of the newspaper business as with cutbacks those in the newspaper industry have to take on more responsibilities. With Chapman that includes responsibilities she’s had even now as General Manager as she continues to oversee such areas as inserts and circulation.
“I just kind of took most of the stuff with me,” said Chapman about bringing her previous responsibilities to her next position at the Recorder.
As she went along, Chapman fell in love with newspapers. “I fell in love with every aspect of it,” she said. “I just wanted to learn every little detail that I could.”
Chapman said she was also fortunate to learn under Parsons. “Bill was great,” she said. “Bill took me under his wing right when he got here and he showed me so much and he’s kind enough to stick around and help me out.”
When it comes to the
Recorder, Chapman said, “I feel we’re in good shape. I feel like we’re a big part of the community and I want to keep it that way.”
Chapman has lived in Porterville all of her life so she knows many people in the community. But she still wants to continue to meet as many people and community leaders as possible.
“I want to meet the people of our community,” she said. “Get to know them, work closely with them.”
While Chapman said she can’t elaborate yet, she also promised some “exciting changes” when it comes to the Recorder in the near future.