The Start of a New Era at The Express News Group, With a New Website and Focus on Digital Media, and Leadership Changes

The end of the year will be the start of a new era at The Express News Group.

The award-winning local news organization, which publishes four weekly newspapers, a series of lifestyle magazines and the website 27east.com, will launch a new, updated website this month, alongside enhanced digital strategies that include greater multimedia capabilities, an improved calendar of events and interactive digital print editions.

The new and improved website, with a stronger focus on digital presentation and outreach, comes at the same time as leadership changes within the organization, as a handful of veteran reporters and editors either retire or transition into new roles, and some newcomers join the team.

Current Managing Editor Bill Sutton has been named the company’s editor-in-chief. Sutton started with the company as a reporter in 1999 and now, 26 years later, has become just the ninth editor in the history of The Southampton Press, and just the second editorial leader of The Express News Group.

Brendan J. O’Reilly will transition from his role as deputy managing editor to digital editor, focusing on growing the company’s digital footprint across a variety of platforms.

Joseph P. Shaw, who has been The Express News Group’s executive editor since its inception, and who led The Press News Group starting in 1998, will remain on staff as consulting editor, and manage the Opinion pages and letters to the editor. He also will continue to serve as moderator at public events and will play a key role, alongside Sutton and O’Reilly, in managing the day-to-day operation of the news division. He also will continue to publish his popular weekly e-newsletter, “Cup of Joe,” and will participate in the podcast “27Speaks” and other digital projects.

Express News Group Photo Editor Dana Shaw will retire at year’s end after 27 years with the company, as will reporter Stephen J. Kotz, who previously was the editor of The East Hampton Press and a news editor of both The Southampton Press and The Sag Harbor Express.

Lee Meyer, a former managing editor at the Times Review Media Group and an editor of Northforker magazine, will replace Dana Shaw in managing the photography department, while also helping produce more video and audio content, including an expansion of the “27Speaks” podcast.

The website 27east.com has undergone a total overhaul and will debut on a new platform with more multimedia presentations across the company’s news, arts, sports, lifestyle and real estate content. A more robust and complete community calendar will allow businesses and community groups to add their event listings and promote them across multiple platforms.

Two stories will be available every month at no cost to readers, as opposed to the company’s current hard paywall, and monthly and annual subscriptions still will be offered. For the first time, The East Hampton Press also is now available for home delivery with a paid subscription.

Express News Group Co-Publishers Kathryn and Gavin Menu owned The Sag Harbor Express when they acquired The Southampton Press and The East Hampton Press to form the combined Express News Group in 2019, with a mission to strengthen community journalism on the South Fork. The latest changes are meant to further that mission while helping the company grow and meet its audience on every platform possible.

“The media landscape, like most industries, is constantly changing,” the Menus said. “The internet caused a lot of disruption in the newspaper business, but today it also provides a lot of opportunity to reach an even larger audience than we are now.

“Community newspapers need to undergo a fundamental transformation to thrive in a digital-first climate,” they added. “Our plan is to embrace multimedia content and continue to build on our deep connections in the communities we serve.”

Shaw, who originally hails from the Pittsburgh area — where he was editor of The Leader-Vindicator in the small town of New Bethlehem — has been with the organization since 1998, when he succeeded former Southampton Press Editor Peter Boody.

He expressed excitement and enthusiasm for both the new website and pivot toward more digital content, and the leadership changes.

“It’s going to be a time of transition, and I’m actually really excited about it,” he said. “I couldn’t be happier to have Bill Sutton taking over as editor-in-chief. He will guide the newsroom wisely, and I have complete confidence in his leadership abilities.

“Bill, Brendan O’Reilly and I have always been a three-man leadership team,” he continued. “And I expect that to continue, with slightly different roles all the way around. I will support them in every way I possibly can.”

Sutton joined the organization in 1999, as a staff writer for the Southampton Press Western Edition, and two years later became the Town Hall reporter for the Eastern Edition. He was promoted to news editor in 2004, and became editor of The Press of Manorville and the Moriches in 2005.

After that paper ceased publication, Sutton became a news editor for the group in 2010, became director of digital media in 2013, and was then named managing editor in 2019.

Sutton, who holds a master’s degree from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, with a focus on journalism innovation, spoke about his new role and his relationship with the Shaws.

“Nearly 30 years ago, Joe and Dana Shaw came to eastern Long Island as a team and transformed not only the look and feel of The Southampton Press but its soul as well,” he said. “Over the past three decades, they have shepherded the growth of the papers into the incredible news organization that it is today. The Express News Group owes a tremendous thanks for their hard work and dedication, day in and day out, week in and week out.

“Dana Shaw’s keen eye and design sense have defined the look of the papers for years, and her skills will be sorely missed,” he added.

Sutton spoke about the role that Shaw has played in his career.

“Joe Shaw has always been a guide, mentor and, more importantly, a friend to me over the years, helping to shape my skills and judgment as an editor, and as I take on the awesome responsibilities of leading the newsroom, I am heartened that he will continue to be a presence, offering his advice and wisdom as a consulting editor,” he said. “He has huge shoes to fill, and I can only hope that I’m up to the task.

“It’s an exciting time for The Express News Group,” he continued. “Our new website and newsroom reorganization will allow us to expand how we present the news in great and exciting ways, while still maintaining the core values and principles of news gathering that our readers have come to expect from The Express News Group. I’m eager to lead the charge into a new chapter for The Express News Group.”

O’Reilly’s leadership and expertise will be a big part of the new chapter as well. His first paying gig in journalism came in 2007, when Shaw and then-Associate Editor Andrew Botsford hired him as the summer intern for the Arts & Living section of The Southampton Press and The East Hampton Press.

He finished a bachelor’s degree in journalism at Hofstra University after that, and before graduating was offered a job as a reporter by Shaw, taking on the Southampton Village and then-Southampton Hospital beats.

In 2009, O’Reilly was promoted to web editor. He left the organization in 2010 to become the first local editor of Southampton Patch, and in 2013 became a web editor for Dan’s Papers, before returning to The Press News Group in 2016 as the features editor. In 2022, he was promoted to deputy managing editor.

As digital editor, O’Reilly’s primary focus will be on making 27east.com and its associated social media channels and newsletters the best that they can be at informing and engaging subscribers.

“I can’t overstate how excited we all are to have a new, modern website with an array of multimedia functionality to better present the news,” he said. “It’s a big investment in community journalism on the South Fork. I expect our readers will fully embrace the new look and enhancements.”

The Shaws are moving back to Pennsylvania, to their new home in the city of Johnstown, but Joseph Shaw will work remotely and will return to the area regularly to host Express Sessions events, debates and other in-person events in the community.

He reiterated his stance that the organization is in good hands with Sutton and O’Reilly at the helm.

“The future of journalism — including community journalism — is digital, and Bill and Brendan are a great editorial team to lead The Express News Group where it needs to go,” he said. “I think we’ve built the finest community journalism organization in the nation, and I hope to play a supporting role in where we go next in providing a crucial service to this unique and marvelous community.”

Shaw had praise for the Menus as well, particularly for shepherding the organization through the COVID-19 pandemic. “They took over the news organization at a pivotal moment, have endured some unrelenting headwinds, and they continue to put the community’s need to know first,” he said.

“The Press and The Express are absolute community treasures, and it was my honor to lead them for all or part of 27 years. It’s time for a new era — and I’m excited to help usher it in.”