Pretty sad news: Mary J. Corey, first woman to lead Sun newsroom, dies of cancer.

[KSweeley]

Link: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/obi...0,600276.story

9:05 AM EST, February 27, 2013

Mary J. Corey, whose personal warmth was matched by a drive that led her to become the first woman in The Baltimore Sun's 176-year history to head its newsroom, died Tuesday of breast cancer. The Sun's senior vice president and director of content, who was 49, essentially grew up at her hometown paper, joining it as a college intern and rising through its reporting and editing ranks. She led The Sun to regional Newspaper of the Year honors during the past two years and spearheaded new print and digital sections while building on its tradition of investigative journalism.

"Mary was an outstanding colleague and a wonderful person," said Timothy E. Ryan, publisher, president and CEO of The Baltimore Sun. "When I had the opportunity to select her as editor in 2010, I knew she would be an extraordinary leader for our team. Amid an unprecedented information revolution, Mary used her leadership and creativity to position The Sun for the future. She was exceptionally adept at driving the vital work of the newsroom while embracing opportunities for growth in the digital age.

"She was a friend and mentor to many here, and I will miss her both as a colleague and a friend."

Some of her contributions to the Baltimore Sun:

Perhaps most personally meaningful for her was the return in 2010 of the Sun Magazine, 14 years after it ceased publication — Ms. Corey got her start in journalism at the magazine while still a student at what is now Notre Dame of Maryland University. The magazine's editor at the time, Susan Baer, spoke at a class there. Ms. Corey met her and boldly followed up with a phone call asking for an internship.

In addition to reviving the Sun Magazine, Ms. Corey led the creation of new sections such as Scene, brought back editorial cartoonist KAL, and bolstered coverage of medicine, science and the federal workplace.

R.I.P Ms. Corey, thank you for your contributions and thank you for bringing The Baltimore Sun into the national spotlight:

Under her leadership, The Sun was named Newspaper of the Year and best website by the Maryland-Delaware-D.C. Press Association. Competing against the region's largest newspapers, such as The Washington Post, The Sun claimed 27 first-place awards last year. Its work was also recognized by professional groups representing investigative, sports, features, business, education and real estate journalists, as well as the White House News Photographers Association.

[Gopher]

Very sad. So young. My sincerest condolences to her family.

[MsTaken]

She was a really wonderful person who cared about her colleagues, the community and The Sun. I worked with her for a while, and I never heard anyone say one negative word about her. Colleagues and former colleagues I've run into today are all incredibly sad about her passing. RIP.