PERSONS.

Executive suite: At Gannett Co. Inc. of McLean, Va., Craig Dubow, the company's chairman, chief executive and president, is taking a four-month leave of absence, following successful back surgery today. Gracia Martore, executive vice president and chief financial officer, will be in charge until his return. ...

California dreamin': At the Merced Sun-Star, James Burns has been named managing editor; he remains sports editor, a job he's held for a year. Burns joined the paper in 2006 as a sports reporter and earlier was sports editor of the nearby Manteca Bulletin and was a news reporter at the Folsom Telegraph in suburban Sacramento and a part-time correspondent for the Tri-Valley Herald in the Bay Area. ... At the San Diego Union-Tribune, Mark Ficarra has been named vice president of sales and marketing; previously, he was publisher of the Long Beach Press-Telegram and the Torrance Daily Breeze, jobs he'd held since early 2008. Earlier, Ficarra was vice president of advertising for the East Valley Tribune in Mesa, Ariz., and before that was general manager of Clipper Magazine and general manager of Pennysaver, both of Phoenix. ... At Southern California's San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group (San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Pasadena Star-News, Whittier Daily News), Steve Lambert has been named editor and publisher; previously, he was editor and general manager, jobs he'd had since February. He also remains vice president of news for the Los Angeles Newspaper Group and general manager of LANG's Inland Division. Earlier, Lambert was editor of The Sun of San Bernardino and the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin of Ontario. Before joining The Sun in 2002, Lambert was editor of The Eagle-Tribune in Lawrence, Mass., and also was a senior news executive with both Scripps and Gannett. Also at SGVNG, Steve Hunt has been named senior editor; previously, he was managing editor, a job he'd held for five years. A 35-year veteran of the Tribune and the Star-News, Hunt has been a reporter, copy editor, sports editor and assistant managing editor. ... At the San Jose Mercury News, Bert Robinson has been named managing editor; previously, he had been assistant managing editor, a job he'd held since 2002 (he had been acting managing editor since November). A 26-year veteran of the Merc -- he started at the paper as an intern -- Robinson was a government and political reporter, working both locally and in the paper's Sacramento and Washington, D.C. bureaus, and served as city editor. ...

Bluegrass state: At The Herald-Leader in Lexington, Ky., Peter Baniak has been named editor; previously, he was deputy editor. Baniak joined the paper in 1992 as a college intern and after graduating college, spent a year at the Chicago Tribune. He returned to Lexington full-time in 1995 and worked his way up the newsroom ladder, becoming an assistant city editor in 2001 and deputy editor in 2008. ... At Kentucky's Richmond Register, Lorie Love has been named editor; previously, she was assistant editor. Earlier, Love was news editor and a reporter at the Register, which she joined in 2004. She started her career as a full-time reporter at Kentucky's Laurel News-Leader, fresh out of high school in 1996. She was named managing editor of the Mountain Advocate in Barbourville, Ky., in 1998 and joined The Sentinel-Echo of London, Ky., in 2001. Love replaces Jim Todd, who retired. ... #

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