Andrea Southern has begun work as publisher of the Kirkland Reporter.
Southern succeeds Mike Walter, who was the publisher for the former Kirkland Courier and Kirkland Reporter since 2001. Southern will serve as the regional publisher of the Kirkland, Redmond and Bothell/Kenmore Reporter newspapers.
Originally from Jamaica, Southern is now getting a taste of the Kirkland life.
The newly-appointed publisher of the Kirkland Reporter will surely be busy guiding the three Sound Publishing Inc. papers, and she’s up to the task armed with extensive experience in the newspaper and advertising fields.
“I’m committed to supporting the Kirkland community with continued, quality, local coverage and involvement,” Southern said.
Josh O’Connor, vice president of East Sound Newspaper Operations, Sound Publishing Inc., says he is “very pleased to have Mrs. Southern join the Kirkland Reporter.
“Andrea is a dynamic leader that brings proven results to our business. In addition to being an excellent communicator, she is very strong in revenue and sales development. Andrea’s commitment to community will be a huge asset to Kirkland.”
As publisher of the Redmond Reporter since 2007, she has guided the paper to success through many innovative and lucrative changes like the annual Best of Redmond contest and the Women in Business event. Both the Redmond and the Bothell/Kenmore Reporter newspapers won a number of Washington Newspaper Publishers Association awards under her leadership, and she also fostered strong alliances with the city, the Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary. She hopes to forge a solid connection with those Kirkland officials and groups, as well.
Southern moved to the U.S. to pursue a communications degree at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.
Due to her husband’s job, she moved to the Seattle area and began working in advertising at her local paper. She quickly advanced to outside sales where she excelled and won a number of WNPA awards.
When she is not working, Southern enjoys spending time at home in Sammamish with her husband and two kids or vacationing in the Caribbean.
In addition to Southern’s appointment, Renée Walden was also named the sales manager of the Kirkland Reporter.
New sales manager Renée Walden joined Sound Publishing, Inc. in 2007 as the publisher of the Issaquah and Sammamish Reporter newspapers.
She was a key player in both the Issaquah and Sammamish chambers of commerce and was asked to be on the Board of Directors for the Issaquah Chamber of Commerce. In addition, she was nominated and won the prestigious role of Queen of Issaquah in 2009.
Walden has resided in Seattle for the past 20 years. She and her husband of 19 years have two children.
Contact Andrea Southern at 425-483-3732, ext. 3050 or asouthern@kirklandreporter.com. Contact Renée Walden at 425-822-9166, ext. 3054 or rwalden@kirklandreporter.com.
