Starting Wednesday, June 15, Brian Heffernan will serve as interim executive editor of the St. Louis Public Radio (STLPR) newsroom. The position was held previously for over six years by Shula Neuman. The interim position is expected to last three to six months while the search for a new executive editor is underway.
“Brian will continue the award-winning work of our newsroom by supporting our team of journalists as they engage our region in crucial conversations,” said STLPR CEO Tina Pamintuan. “I thank him for his willingness to step into this role as we move forward with a local and national search.”
Heffernan has been the digital and special projects editor at STLPR since 2018, guiding the entire newsroom’s award-winning digital news presentation at stlpr.org and leading the team responsible for data visuals and analysis, social media engagement, photojournalism and copy editing.
Before coming to STLPR, Heffernan reported for a variety of publications including St. Louis Magazine, Riverfront Times, Al Jazeera America, San Francisco magazine and the Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette newspapers in South Carolina. He also worked in St. Louis’ burgeoning startup and tech industry as a project manager and quality assurance specialist.
A St. Louis native, Heffernan received both his master’s and bachelor’s degrees from the University of Missouri School of Journalism.
As interim executive editor he will lead a team of editors guiding local news coverage for newscasts, St. Louis on the Air, podcasts and stlpr.org. Additional support for the newsroom and the digital news team will be added while Heffernan takes on the interim role.
About St. Louis Public Radio
St. Louis Public Radio (STLPR) is a non-profit media organization, delivering accuracy and understanding. Its team of local reporters and producers push the boundaries of storytelling, bringing context and humanity to the issues and ideas that affect life in the metro region, Rolla, Quincy and rural areas in Missouri and Illinois. Reflecting the voices of the community, STLPR engages in crucial conversations that bring people together. With award-winning local news coverage, original podcasts, jazz and classical music channels, and national and international news from NPR and the BBC, STLPR is a listener-supported service of theUniversity of Missouri-St. Louis.
