Hal Tanner III named NCPA president
By Kenneth Fine
Published in News on March 2, 2012 1:55 PM
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News-Argus publisher Hal Tanner III accepts the gavel from outgoing president Rachel Hoskins.
CHAPEL HILL -- In a moment he characterized as "humbling," News-Argus publisher Hal Tanner III was elected the North Carolina Press Association's newest president by his peers Thursday morning.
And although his term does not officially begin until Aug. 1, he is already taking his latest role seriously.
"It's a tremendous honor, but more importantly, it's a responsibility," he said. "I'm proud of the board we have in place. I feel confident that this board has the expertise and vision necessary to join forces with the leaders of news organizations across the state as we take on not only the challenges of an ever-changing marketplace, but also as we prepare to capitalize on the opportunities that change brings."
Tanner brings more than 25 years of newspaper experience to the post.
After graduating from Wake Forest University, he moved to the Greenville News-Piedmont in South Carolina to join that newspaper's management training program, which involved a succession of assignments throughout the newspaper's various departments -- while there, he also earned a master's degree in business administration from Clemson University.
He was named vice president of the newspaper company in 1993 where, in addition to his other duties, he served as business manager and circulation director and, finally, assistant to the senior group president, which gave him responsibilities with seven newspapers owned by Gannett Corp.
He was promoted to president and publisher of the Baxter Bulletin in Mountain Home, Ark., in 1997, before returning to Goldsboro to become the News-Argus general manager -- a position he held for 10 years before taking over as publisher when his father, Hal Tanner Jr., retired in 2010.