On Media

AP hires new Virginia, West Virginia editor

By HADAS GOLD

01/29/2014 05:26 PM EST

The Associated Press has hired Steve McMillan as a replacement for Dena Potter, the editor who was fired in October along with veteran reporter Bob Lewis after an erroneous report on Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. 

McMillan joins the AP from the Denver Post, where he's worked for 16 years, the AP said in its announcement on Wednesday. 

"Steve is a top-notch journalist who has a track record for helping reporters navigate complicated issues and capturing big stories for a broad audience," AP South Regional Editor Lisa Marie Pane said in a statement. " We're looking forward to having a journalist of his caliber join the AP to oversee all the fascinating stories from this part of the world — from the coal industry and politics to Big Tobacco." 

Potter was fired after she edited a story by Lewis alleging that McAuliffe had lied to a federal official investigating a death benefits scam.  The Associated Press retracted the story less than two hours after it went up, and Lewis immediately took responsibility for the mistake.  Both were fired soon after, a move that many in the Virginia political and media world viewed as too harsh. 

In December the AP hired Alan Suderman from the Center for Public Integrity to take over Lewis's beat of Virginia state government and politics.