• New York Observer, Monday, August 3, 2009 10:22 PM

Catherine Mathis, The New York Times Co.'s chief of public relations, is leaving the company to go to Standard & Poor's after 12 years. She served as the chief communications strategist and company spokesperson "through some of the most challenging chapters in our history," says the publisher.

Even before the announcement, the newspaper had been shifting its communications strategy as a way to deflate speculation about the future of the business. Now top company office-holders respond directly to criticism of the company on the Web and elsewhere, including contributing to the comments section of Gawker.

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