Gary Watson built on his Northern Star background and, over the course of several decades, ascended to some of American journalism’s highest levels. The Rockford native graduated from NIU in 1967 with a degree in journalism and a political science minor. He has enjoyed a long, prestigious career with the Gannett Company, Inc., and now works in Arlington, Va., as president of the company’s Newspaper Division.

At the Star, Gary was sports editor his junior year and both managing editor and editor in chief while he was a senior.

He wrote years later, “I suppose the toughest editorial decisions we made dealt with the role of the Star. While we knew that our mission should not be one of a Ôpublic relations mouthpiece’ for the university, many of us were not comfortable with the growing trend and increasing pressure to abandon our news function in favor of becoming an advocacy journal whose sole mission was to bring about changes in the university and in society at large. As a result, our editorial policy at times appeared to be schizophrenic as we struggled with this problem.”

He also recalls overseeing the conversion to cold type — a controversial decision at the time — and the blizzard of ’67, when the staff defied the state police on a closed highway en route to pick up the papers in Hinsdale.

Shortly after graduation, Gary joined the Gannett newspaper chain. For 11 years, his career as a reporter and editor took him to Boise, Idaho, Springfield, Mo., and his home town Rockford. In 1981, just in his mid-30s, Gary was named president and publisher of the Rockford Register Star. Two years later, he assumed the additional responsibilities of vice president of the central region of Gannett’s Newspaper division.

In 1984, he moved to Cincinnati, as president and publisher of the Cincinnati Enquirer, at the time the biggest Gannett paper, and president of the Central region, with responsibilities for 18 papers. In 1985, he was named president of the Community Newspaper Division and, in 1990, president of the Newspaper Division of Gannett Company, Inc.

In 1997, Gary received the NIU Distinguished Alumni Award for his outstanding career in the print media.