Magazine Association Finally Finds a New Chairman

MPA—the Association of Magazine Media—has named Michael Clinton as its new chairman, plugging a vacancy created when Jack Griffin was forced to give up that post in February after he was fired as CEO of Time Inc. The MPA board elected Clinton at its quarterly meeting, which is taking place in Washington, D.C.

MPA—formerly known as Magazine Publishers of America—faced a sticky situation in replacing Griffin. Traditionally, the chairman comes from the organization's top leadership layer. But with several changes at the top of the major magazine companies in recent years, most of those in the MPA leadership, including Clinton’s boss, David Carey, are relatively new to their day jobs and didn't want to take on the added responsibility.

Clinton is a nontraditional choice in that he didn't previously sit on the MPA’s executive committee and does not occupy the top leadership role at his company. He has climbed steadily at Hearst Magazines, though, and became president of marketing and publishing director in June 2010. He was named to the board of Hearst Corp. in March.

Clinton also has been a longtime cheerleader for magazines and active in MPA initiatives, which also makes him a logical choice for the job. He’ll hold the position until October 2012.