FCW Insider: Transitions at FCW

We always talk about changes. Over the past few days and weeks, FCW has been going through some transitions of its own, some of them pushed on us.As many of you may know, FCW's news editor Jason Miller has given notice. Jason will be joining Federal News Radio. His last day here at the 1105 Government Information Group is March 14.* John Monroe will be joining Federal Computer Week as editor. John will be ensuring that the magazine and Web site are vibrant and exciting. I have had the pleasure and honor of working with John for years -- when he was FCW's editor-in-chief, he promoted me to be FCW's managing editor. John has been working on this stuff for many years and he is nothing short of an outstanding editor. Anybody who has worked with him knows that the biggest challenge is just keeping up with the seemingly endless ideas that he has – and they aren’t just ideas. They are brilliant and exciting ideas that constantly strive to tell stories in different ways – to capture readers.* Florence Olsen will continue to be FCW's managing editor, a position she has held for several years now. Florence has had a long tenure in this market. Florence and I worked together at GCN and I have been thrilled to work with her here at FCW . Unfortunately, the managing editor doesn't get to write that much. I hope with the transition, we will get her voice back into the magazine.* Michael Hardy, who moved from FCW to Washington Technology after the merger, will return to FCW. Hardy will be news editor and will be responsible for ensuring that FCW is covering the stories that are important to our readers. Specifically, he will be overseeing the policy and news sections of the magazines and FCW.com’s news coverage. Hardy has been with us for several years now and he has proven to be a really outstanding reporter and editor. You can always tell a Hardy story without even looking at the byline. He brings a level of knowledge – and manages to convey that in his stories. We are thrilled to have him back at FCW.* Finally, Matthew Weigelt will be taking over the management of the procurement section of the magazine. Weigelt has been with FCW for several years now and has really proven himself as an outstanding reporter. His enthusiasm is just infectious. Matthew is just a voracious learner. In fact, I have joked with him that I have to be careful with what I say sometimes because he takes it all to heart. It is a really remarkable characteristic in a reporter. Actually, it’s a remarkable characteristic in a person, let alone a reporter. So I know he will dive into the reporting/editing position with the passion that he brings to all of his work.




These transitions are never easy and Jason will be much missed. I have told him privately – and I have said it publicly – that one of the best things about the merger for me has been that, after years of competing against Jason, I have been able to work with him for the past 14 months. It has been a joy. He shares my passion for the important work. We would have disagreements – sometimes loud ones (we're both somewhat loud and passionate in our beliefs) – but we both have ardent respect for each other and we both always knew that we were after the same thing: creating the best publication possible that helped you do your job better. And, of course, Jason is a remarkable reporter. I am convinced he could find a news story in an empty room.


With Jason’s transition, it gives us an opportunity to make some changes here. Among them:









These changes leave some vacancies in other places. We will detail those in the coming days. All of that being said, I think these changes are a good step in putting the right people in the right places so we are covering the right things.


We will get an updated beat list finalized soon.


I know you will join me in congratulating John, Michael and Matthew for the good work they have done over the years.