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Kevin Jones, BJ '88

What do you do?
I am the chief operating officer at The St. Louis American newspaper. I'm in charge of running the entire operations for The St. Louis American print edition, stlamerican.com and our 501(c)3 foundation. I work closely with all departments: sales, editorial, production/graphics, accounting, information technology/Web, administration and circulation. We've been named the No. 1 African-American newspaper in the nation six times in the last 12 years and have been the recipient of more than 200 statewide, regional and national awards in the last three years alone. We are currently the third largest weekly newspaper in the entire state of Missouri, with a circulation of 70,000.

How did you get your job?
After a stint with the Suburban Journals chain, I was approached by a local media headhunter to fill the classified manager position at The St. Louis American in 1992. I was then promoted to sales manager, then director of sales and marketing, then to chief operating officer.

What is the best professional lesson you learned at the J-School?
Be creative!

What advice do you have for current students?
First of all, you need to be dedicated to learning, but at the same time, have some fun. I look back and think of how great a time I had. With a stressful career, a family and just the day-to-day happenings, time flies by quicker than ever. I had some fun, I assure you. For those interested in the business and management side of media, I would strongly encourage them to try to learn as many different aspects of their field as possible. Through my professional career I have been blessed to learn all kinds of aspects of the industry; if I hadn't, I wouldn't be in my current position, where I'm dealing with sales, accounting, editorial, layout, printing, distribution, etc.

What is your favorite J-School memory?
While at J-School, I worked for three different newspapers simultaneously (The Maneater, the Missourian, and the Columbia Daily Tribune) doing everything from writing stories, to selling ads, to designing ads...I even had a comic strip. While talking to my counselor one day, he asked, "Well, what do you think you want to do?" I said, "Well, I know I want to be in the newspaper industry, just not sure." His next question: "Well, what kind of money do you want to make?" My answer: "A lot." He replied, "Well, you better stay involved in the business side if you want to make substantial money, because unless you are an absolute superstar, you won't be making big bucks writing."