Robyn Tomlin

Robyn Tomlin is a veteran journalist, media executive and leader with a passion for using performance-driven change efforts to help news organizations transform and grow. Robyn is currently chief news officer for McClatchy, where she works to support local newsroom leaders across the country in their quest to build sustainable and healthy local news operations. Prior to her promotion to that position in 2023, Robyn served in various roles with McClatchy, including VP for local news, president and editor of The News & Observer in Raleigh, N.C., and the Southeast regional editor.

She was first introduced to the performance-driven change methodology in 2015 as a participant/team leader for the inaugural Knight-Temple Table Stakes program in her role as vice president and managing editor at The Dallas Morning News. She later worked closely with several McClatchy teams that participated in the Major Metro Table Stakes program and the UNC-Knight Foundation Table Stakes Newsroom Initiative, she served as a coach with the Poynter Table Stakes program and she helped organize and lead the Gannett-McClatchy Table Stakes program as coach and trainer. She has served as an MTC coach since 2021.

A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Robyn taught digital journalism at Georgetown University and has presented at conferences and workshops around the world. A four-time Pulitzer Prize jurist, she currently sits on the boards of directors for the News Leaders Association, the National Press Foundation, the UNC Hussman School of Media and Journalism’s Board of Advisors and the North Carolina Open Government Coalition.