CNHI appoints state reporter in Pennsylvania

HARRISBURG, Pa. — John Finnerty,  a veteran Pennsylvania journalist, has been appointed to the new position of state reporter for CNHI newspapers in the Keystone State.

Finnerty will work out of the statehouse in Harrisburg, and concentrate his coverage on issues affecting readers in the Pennsylvania markets served by Community Newspaper Holdings Inc.

“State government increasingly reaches into every aspect of life in Pennsylvania and thus needs greater scrutiny,” said Bill Ketter, CNHI’s senior vice president of news, in announcing Finnerty’s appointment.  “The state reporter’s assignment is to keep a watchful eye on news that local readers care about -- and to report on it in detail.”

CNHI dailies in Pennsylvania include the Johnstown Tribune-Democrat, the Meadville Tribune, the New Castle News, the Sharon Herald, the Danville News and the Sunbury Daily Item. The group also publishes the weekly Allied News in Grove City.

Finnerty, 41, has been a reporter, editorialist and city editor at the Sunbury Daily Item for the last 13 years. Before that, he was a reporter at the Delaware State News in Dover, Del., for four years. He is a graduate of Gannon University in Erie, Pa.

Over his journalism career, Finnerty has received Keystone Press Awards from the Pennsylvania Press Association for investigative reporting, breaking news reporting, environmental reporting and editorial writing.  His in-depth coverage of bungled school district property assessments in the Sunbury region in 2010 led to the eventual dismissal of the head of the State Tax Equalization Board.

CNHI, based in Montgomery, Ala., is a leading publisher of local news and information. The group serves more than 130 communities in 23 states with newspapers, websites and specialty publications.