New editor at Morning Sun

Dec 1, 2021

PITTSBURG, Kansas — Morning Sun Publisher Larry Hiatt announced mid-November that Jonathan Riley has been appointed editor of the newspaper.

Originally from Oakland, California, Riley moved to Pittsburg and joined the Morning Sun’s staff in early 2019. His previous journalism experience includes time spent writing for newspapers in California and Massachusetts, as well as working with the investigative team at CNN in Washington, D.C.

Riley earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology, with a minor in mass communication, from California State University East Bay. He also holds a master’s degree in journalism with a political reporting focus from Boston University.

Riley’s appointment as editor follows the acquisition of the Morning Sun in September by the locally owned Pittsburg Publishing Company LLC from its former owner Gannett Co. Inc.

"During the conversion of the ownership, we saw Jon produce the kind of quality newspaper we knew the community wanted and deserved,” said Hiatt, in announcing Riley’s appointment. “The expansion of the Sun over the past few months is an indication of Jon’s journalistic style and commitment to a quality newspaper.”

Like Girard High School’s Trojan Tribune, the Morning Sun will be featuring Pittsburg High School’s Booster Redux as a special insert in the Morning Sun.

“While we continue to work to improve the quality of the Morning Sun with additional staff and resources under our new ownership, our overall philosophy and goal as a news organization has not changed much,” Riley said. “We aim first and foremost to provide fair, accurate and balanced coverage of news and events relevant to the local community in Pittsburg and Crawford County.”