Go North and take a  turn at Maza. (via LinkedIn/Reminder Publications)

A few months after Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni’s longtime comms director moved on, his new one is in place. Payton North, the now-former managing editor for The Reminder, a weekly newspaper, took over as director of communications for the DA’s office this month. North had led the hyperlocal publication’s news operations as executive editor since late 2022.

North follows what is an increasingly well-trod path for journalists as the economics of media grow more precarious. Many in her position have gone into public relations roles, both in government and in the private sector. However, The Reminder will not lack capable leadership. Managing Editor Chris Maza, himself a veteran of the paper, has stepped into the role of interim executive editor.

North said she was “thrilled” to be joining the DA’s office and contributing to its work in the community.

“Through my former role at Reminder Publishing, I fell in love with serving my community. Whether it be through numerous volunteer jobs I have taken on over the years, or the opportunities I have had to join several local organizations boards of directors, the mission of the District Attorney’s Office is one that resonates both personally and professionally.”

In her farewell column, North described how she had grown professionally and personally over eight years at The Reminder. After initially not getting the job, the paper’s then lead editor, G. Michael Dobbs, made a switch and offered her the gig once she graduated.

“Payton North’s departure from The Reminder to the office of the Hampden County District Attorney as the new chief communications officer is good news for Anthony Gulluni as he has hired an experience journalist who understand the media landscape in the county,” Dobbs told WMP&I.

Noting her background as a journalist and master’s degree in public relations, he added that North “understands both sides of the street, so to speak.”

While some organizations or businesses are large enough to have their own public relations apparatuses, few government entities in the 413, do. That is not say all mayors or legislators want for press flacks. Still, few local government offices are large enough or traffic in enough information to justify a larger media operation.

Gulluni looked to someone familiar with the local media landscape to staff up his comms shop. (via Facebook/Hampden DA)

The principal exceptions would be congressional offices, the Springfield mayor’s office, the Hampden Sheriff’s office and the Hampden DA’s office. The sheer volume of inquiries the DA’s office receives from reporters is high, given that it operates in some of the commonwealth’s busiest courts. Furthermore, such a workload could improve a comms director’s longer-term career prospect.

North takes over one of the few large comms public comms shops in Western Massachusetts. Her background as a journalist is a shift from that of her predecessor, James Leydon. He had been Gulluni’s spokesperson for nearly a decade when he left last year. Before working for the DA, he had been Springfield Mayor Domenic Saron’s communications director. He had held other roles in the mayor’s office, too.

Gulluni did not comment on North’s hiring.

Maza will be a steady hand at The Reminder. Yet, his elevation comes amid a fresh wave of instability in Valley media. New England Public Media instituted layoffs this month and more upheaval potentially on the horizon. The Reminder itself has seen a reduction in five staff positions and a cut for freelancers. Dobbs, who maintained a column after retiring, decided to discontinue it rather than cut it back.

Advance Publications, which owns The Reminder as well as The Republican and Masslive, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Maza was not available as of posting time. However, in his own “Hello there!” column as interim executive editor, he recalled his background in media. Maza came to journalism after learning at the foot of columnist Tom Shea. Dobbs brought him aboard The Reminder as a news reporter in 2010. Amid changes in his life, he decided to transition to a stint in marketing and communications.

However, the scribe’s siren drew him back to journalism. He began writing for Longmeadow News and later The Westfield News. Then Reminder Publishing itself—by then an Advance property—bought both the Westfield paper. Maza took a key role in The Reminder’s expansion to other areas of the Valley.

“This is all a very longwinded way of introducing myself as the new executive editor for Reminder Publishing,” he wrote. “I suppose a much simpler way to put it is I’m a news man and I always have been, whether I knew it or not.”

Maza moderating a debate for a special election in Springfield’s Ward 5. (WMP&I)

Pointing to his roots, lifelong residency in and around Springfield and bearing witness the region’s recent history, Maza looked ahead to The Reminder’s part in them—and in covering them.

“I’m excited to see what’s next for the area and especially excited to lead Reminder Publishing’s part in all of it. I am truly humbled that the company has seen me fit to follow in Mike and Payton’s footsteps,” Maza wrote. “Surely, with the groundwork they have laid for me and the talented staff we have here, I am set on a course to help continue Reminder Publishing’s success story.”

Dobbs underscored Maza’s versatility, sliding into news after beginning as a sports writer. He acknowledged the challenges ahead for his erstwhile successor, noting the budget cuts that have come down from Advance.

“Maza has the capability of coming up with strategies to complete the mission of The Reminder – cover local news that other outlets are not – and I believe he will be successful if Advance and its local management hierarchy are willing to support his efforts and eventually restore the resources he needs,” Dobbs continued.