William J. Rush, publisher and editor-in-chief of The Morning Journal in Lorain, Ohio, was named chief executive of the New Haven Register Wednesday, the papers' parent company announced. Rush, 53, led The Morning Journal's move from an afternoon to a morning publication and coordinated a $6.5 million building expansion and press installation. The Morning Journal and the New Haven Register are both owned by Princeton, N.J.-based Journal Register Co., which is a holding company of the New York investment firm E.M. Warburg, Pincus & Co. The investment firm acquired publisher Ralph Ingersoll II's American newspapers in July. Rush replaces Thomas P. Geyer, who was dismissed Oct. 15 in a disagreement with the Register's new owners over the need for more layoffs. The Register laid off 19 employees at the beginning of this month and 30 more a day after Geyer's departure. Twenty of the positions were in the news department. Rush, who was introduced Wednesday to Register employees, said his first priority will be to ``make sure the paper fulfills its commitment to the community while being financially responsible.'' Rush spent 11 years in editorial and advertising management positions in New England and Ohio before joining Horvitz Newspapers in 1969 as assistant to Harry R. Horvitz, the chief executive officer. He subsequently served as chief executive at The News-Herald in Lake County, Ohio, the News Journal in Mansfield, Ohio, The Record in Troy, N.Y., and The Tribune Chronicle in Warren, Ohio. A native of Alliance, Ohio, Rush is a 1958 graduate of Ohio State University's School of Journalism.
