Industry vets Williams, Hudler, Petrak join American Hometown Publishing

NASHVILLE, Tenn., July 13, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- American Hometown Publishing Inc. announced today three industry veterans have joined the organization. Clarissa Williams has been named Chief Operating Officer, while shareholders have elected Carol Hudler and Michael Petrak to the board of directors.

"With a new era of growth under way at AHP, we recognize the importance of surrounding ourselves with good people," said AHP Chairman Townes Duncan. "This is a power trio of talent that will further accelerate our operational performance and long-term strategies."

Williams most recently served as president and publisher of the State Journal-Register in the Illinois capital of Springfield. She has also held leadership roles with Landmark Community Newspapers, Community Newspaper Holdings Inc., American Publishing, Halifax Media Group and GateHouse Media.

Carol Hudler is founder of Hudler Success Strategies, a consulting firm specializing in media management, interim leadership and business development. She also programs the annual Mega-Conference for the Inland Press, Local Media Association and Southern Newspaper Publishers Association. Prior to 2014, she worked for Gannett in a number of positions, including managing Gannett's local media operations across the Southeast as South Group President, and as publisher of The Tennessean and The News-Press (Ft Myers, Fla.).  She was the publisher of The Macon (Ga.) Telegraph and worked for Knight-Ridder and a number of other publishing companies in various sales and marketing roles earlier in her career.

Michael Petrak is the Managing Partner of PrismXL, a media consulting company he founded in 2012. He also serves as executive vice president of Tactician Media Consulting, which helps media companies utilize benchmark data to improve preprint run rates and execute data-driven growth strategies. Previously, Petrak served in senior corporate sales roles at GateHouse Media, Media News Group and Knight Ridder. Prior to his corporate roles, he served as general manager of the Kansas City Star, as well as publisher of two state capital newspapers, The (Boise) Idaho Statesman and the State Journal-Register.

These appointments continue a chain of activities that began in May 2015 when AHP brought in Brad Dennison as President & CEO. A former top executive with GateHouse Media, Dennison completed AHP's first acquisition in eight years late last year with the purchase of The Islander News in Key Biscayne, Fla., in November.

American Hometown Publishing is an independent media company that operates newspapers, magazines and websites in Florida, Tennessee, Virginia and Oklahoma.

SOURCE American Hometown Publishing