AP News Appoints First Female, Person of Color, and Non-American CEO

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] The Associated Press (AP), a leading American news agency, has appointed its first female, person of color, and non-American CEO in its 175-year history, according to major foreign media reports on the 3rd (local time).

In a press release on the same day, AP announced that Daisy Virasingham, the current Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer (COO), has been appointed as the successor to current CEO Gary Pruitt.

Virasingham will lead AP starting January 1 of next year, when Pruitt steps down.

Virasingham, a British woman of Sri Lankan descent, joined AP in 2010 after working in marketing for global patent information company LexisNexis and the Financial Times. She has never worked as a journalist.

Virasingham emphasized, "We will maintain AP's identity as an unbiased and fact-based source of information," adding, "This is a core value of AP, established 175 years ago."

She also stated, "In the challenging media environment today, AP is also under pressure to generate revenue," and added, "We will strengthen our core business and expand our operations."

Foreign media evaluated Virasingham's appointment as reflecting the current status where 40% of AP's revenue, which has doubled compared to 15 years ago, is generated overseas.

Virasingham is expected to continue diversifying AP's revenue base. AP's revenue last year decreased to $467 million (approximately 535.4 billion KRW).

During Pruitt's tenure as CEO, AP won six Pulitzer Prizes, including two this year. In a statement, Pruitt said, "It is the right time to pass the baton," and added, "I believe Virasingham is the most suitable person to lead AP into its next chapter."

Pruitt is currently searching for a successor to Sally Buzbee, who was AP's managing editor and recently moved to become the editor of the Washington Post. The new managing editor is expected to be appointed within a month or two.

As AP's core business of selling news to newspapers and broadcasters has begun to shrink, it has expanded its business areas by providing information to corporations and academia, among others.