Tony Ronzio has been promoted to editor and publisher of the Kennebec Journal and Bill Thompson has been appointed to the same position at the Central Maine Morning Sentinel in Waterville, according to a July 9 announcement by Maine Today Media (MTM) Publisher Richard L. Connor.
   Thompson, 63, of Waterville, had been editor of both papers and Ronzio, 30, of Hallowell, was managing editor at the Kennebec Journal.
   Ronzio currently serves as 1st Vice-President of the Maine Press Association and chair of the MPA Legislative Committee.
   With the new job titles, Thompson and Ronzio will have responsibilities involving all departments of the newspapers, Connor said. They will also have a more visible public presence and “will serve as the papers’ key executives in dealing with readers, customers and the public.”
   Connor also said he wanted to have that model in place since purchasing the papers in June 2009 because it allows each paper to function more independently, yet still as a team.
   Thompson began working for MaineToday Media in fall 2009. He previously was editor of daily newspapers in Illinois and New Jersey and also was editor of the Fort Worth Business Press, a weekly business journal in Texas. He was a columnist for The Times Leader in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., and at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
   Ronzio was hired as managing editor at the Kennebec Journal in November 2009. Prior to that, he was editorial page editor for the Sun Journal in Lewiston, where he had worked since 2006. The Rhode Island native was also a reporter, assistant editor and bureau chief for Village Soup Times from 2001-2006.