Rick O’Connor has been appointed president and chief executive officer of Black Press Group Ltd. In his newly expanded role at the company, O’Connor will oversee Black Press Group operations in Canada and the United States, with all regional and division presidents reporting directly to him.

Since first joining the company in 1998 as president of MetroValley Newspapers, O’Connor has been instrumental in the launch of Kamloops This Week, served as a publisher and group publisher for two other newspaper groups and served as chief operating officer from 2005 until the present.

O’Connor is a former president of Suburban Newspapers of America and a past director of the British Columbia and Yukon Community Newspapers Association (BCYCNA).

In 2009, he was awarded the prestigious Dean Lesher Award for his contributions to the North American suburban newspaper industry. He also holds a Silver Quill from the Canadian Community Newspapers Association.