Cleveland.com Introduces Editorial Board's New Community Members

In April, Cleveland.com editor Chris Quinn announced that the digital outlet was accepting applications for its editorial board.

In the wake of company buyouts, which saw the departure of, (among other senior staffers), Sharon Broussard and Karl Turner, the editorial board's only two members of color, Quinn said Cleveland.com was looking to diversify its membership via unpaid, short-term stints for community members.

One of the initiative's aims was to "explore what's important to communities that are not represented on the board today," Quinn wrote. 

In a letter last week, Quinn announced that the board had selected its four community members from a pool of more than 200 applicants. They are as follows.

MARY CAY DOHERTY - 49: History teacher at Magnificat High School; self-described conservative; mom.

ERIC FOSTER - 34: Attorney; bailiff to Housing Court Judge Ron O'Leary; Youngstown-born, Los Angeles-bred.

LISA GARVIN - 60: Lifelong news and communications pro; Shaker Heights native; descended from a Cleveland trailblazer. 

VICTOR RUIZ - 41: Puerto Rico native; Executive Director of Esperanza; Chairman of the Tri-C board of trustees.

In accordance with Quinn's stated goals, the community members are younger and more racially varied than the current board. The community members will have a limited role, participating in weekly conversations (beginning next Monday) and contributing paragraphs as part of the recurring "Editorial Roundtable" feature. They will also participate in the board's endorsement discussions this fall.

The editorial board is under the leadership of Betsy Sullivan, who has been at the helm since the departure of Brent Larkin. Its five additional permanent members are all older white men: George Rodrigue and Chris Quinn, editors of the PD and Cleveland.com, respectively; Quinn's former City Hall reporting partner Mark Vosburgh, who now serves as the director of public policy and advocacy for Cleveland.com; longtime statehouse correspondent and current OU professor Thomas Suddes; and former Reader Representative and raving lunatic Ted Diadiun.