The nonprofit news outlet The Marshall Project on Tuesday named Katrice Hardy as its next chief executive.
Ms. Hardy, 51, is the executive editor and vice president of The Dallas Morning News, a role she started in 2021. She will lead the business and newsroom sides of The Marshall Project, which has been overseen by a president and an editor in chief.
The Marshall Project was started in 2014 and focuses on reporting about the criminal justice system. It also distributes a print magazine in prisons and jails and runs a television show for inmates. The outlet, which is based in New York, has a staff of 85 people and has reporters in cities including Cleveland, St. Louis and Jackson, Miss. Its reporting has been awarded two Pulitzer Prizes.
Ms. Hardy said in an interview that it was a tough decision to leave The Dallas Morning News but she couldn’t turn down “an amazing opportunity to lead such a reputable news organization.”
“My goal is to make sure we’ve got many, many more years of growth and we’re in more prisons,” she said. “They’ve done a really good job of being a really important news source for the imprisoned.”
She will start in the role in March, and will be based in Dallas.
Ms. Hardy was previously the Midwest regional editor for the USA Today Network and the executive editor of The Indianapolis Star. While at The Star, her staff won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for national reporting, along with their reporting partners at The Marshall Project, AL.com and the Invisible Institute. Ms. Hardy has also been a Marshall Project board member for the past three years.
“She brings rich editorial experience, an innovative mind-set and a deep commitment to our mandate of telling stories that would otherwise be untold,” said Liz Simons, the chair of The Marshall Project’s board.
The Marshall Project’s current president, Carroll Bogert, who has been in the role since 2016, recently informed its board of her intention to step down. The previous editor in chief, Susan Chira, announced last year that she would retire in January.
Ms. Hardy said one of her top priorities would be to appoint a new editor in chief, who will run the newsroom’s day-to-day operation and report to Ms. Hardy.
