Newspaper veteran takes helm of Courier, Malvern Daily Record

Rhonda Overbey, who spent the first half of her life in Conway before following her newspaper career across four states, will lead the team at The Saline Courier and Malvern Daily Record as regional publisher and advertising director.

In her role,

Overbey coordinates and oversees all aspects of the operations of these newspapers, as well as, advertising operations in the Marianna and Forest City markets. She will have additional responsibilities at Horizon Publication news organizations outside Arkansas.

Terri Leifeste, Horizon Publication’s vice president and former Courier publisher said, “I am extremely pleased to have Rhonda join our team. I am confident that she will be an enormous asset to our company, The Saline Courier staff as well as the community. I believe that Rhonda’s strong roots in Arkansas will serve us well as she embraces this new role.”

Overbey joins Horizon Publications and The Saline Courier and Malvern Daily Record most recently from Evening Post Publishing Newspaper Group in South Carolina where she was publisher and advertising director of the Aiken Standard, The Star of North Augusta and Fort Gordon (Georgia) News for six years. During her time there, she served on the board of directors for the Aiken Chamber of Commerce and the United Way of Aiken County.

She is a member of the First

Baptist Church of Aiken, South Carolina and the Aiken Noon Rotary club.

She graduated from Conway High School and received a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Political Science from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville where she was managing editor of The Razorback yearbook for two years and named to the Who’s Who in Colleges and Universities. She received a Master’s degree in Administrative Leadership from the University of Oklahoma.

Additionally, Overbey has participated in chamber of commerce leadership academies in Faulkner County (Arkansas) and Muskogee County (Oklahoma).

Overbey began her career as a news reporter at the Log Cabin Democrat in Conway and quickly moved into advertising sales and sales management.

She worked in advertising sales at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and as the consumer publications sales manager at Arkansas Business Publishing Group before accepting the advertising director position at the Muskogee (Oklahoma) Phoenix and the publisher and advertising director of the Sedalia (Missouri) Democrat prior to moving to South Carolina.

“I’m thrilled to be back home in Arkansas doing the work I love,” Overbey recently told The Saline Courier. “I’m listening to advertisers. I’m listening to readers and I’m listening to non-readers and everyone agrees that a good newspaper just makes a community stronger.”

She added “For 146 years, Saline County has trusted our newspaper. With internet availability at its peak, more people than ever have access to our news and advertising messages and we want to meet that information challenge.”

“The area has been incredibly welcoming. Once again, I’m within a short drive of my sister, a nephew and four little ‘grands’ who will keep me busy. I’m looking forward to taking advantage of all the area has to offer,” Overbey said.

She enjoys reading, walking her two golden retrievers and following the trials and tribulations of the Dallas Cowboys.