PORTLAND – The Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram announced Wednesday that it has hired two veteran journalists to join the newspaper’s staff in the next few weeks.

Steve Mistler will cover the State House, government and various local issues. Colin Woodard will cover topics such as campaign finances, ocean policy and politics, said Cliff Schechtman, executive editor of the Press Herald and Telegram.

“These are two accomplished journalists who understand Maine and its unique issues,” Schechtman said. “We’re rebuilding our news gathering efforts to better serve the community. This is just the beginning.”

The hires follow the announcement last week of new capitalization of MaineToday Media by Maine Values LLC, which is owned by S. Donald Sussman. MaineToday Media operates the Press Herald and Telegram, the Kennebec Journal in Augusta, the Morning Sentinel in Waterville, the Coastal Journal in Bath and related websites.

Mistler will join the Press Herald and Telegram this month. Woodard is expected to start in May.

Schechtman said more reporters will be hired in the weeks to come.

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Woodard, a Maine native, is an author and freelance writer. He was a longtime foreign correspondent for The Christian Science Monitor, the San Francisco Chronicle and The Chronicle of Higher Education.

His work has appeared in publications such as The Economist, Smithsonian, and The Washington Post.

In Maine, he has been a contributing editor for Down East magazine and a regular contributor to the Portland Phoenix and Working Waterfront.

Woodard is a graduate of Tufts University and has a master’s degree in international relations from the University of Chicago. He lives in Portland with his wife and their son.

Mistler is now a reporter for the Lewiston Sun Journal. He was named the Maine Press Association’s Journalist of the Year in 2011 for his State House and political coverage.

Mistler covered sports and news for The Forecaster newspapers from 2005 to 2010. He’s a graduate of the University of New Hampshire, where he studied English and political science. He lives in Bath with his wife and their son.

 


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