Tribune Ad Exec Is Named L.A. Times General Manager

David P. Murphy, a Tribune Co. advertising executive, was named executive vice president and general manager of the Los Angeles Times, the newspaper announced Friday.

Murphy, 51, will be responsible for advertising, circulation and consumer marketing, operations and technology at the newspaper.

He will begin his new duties June 1.

“This is an opportunity of a lifetime, and I look forward to my new role as the Los Angeles Times aggressively grows its business,” he said.

Murphy has been president of Tribune Media Net, the company’s national advertising organization, and vice president of advertising for Tribune’s publishing unit since 2000.

He has been with the Chicago-based media company, whose holdings include the Los Angeles Times, for 28 years.

He will succeed Jeffrey M. Johnson, 45, who is set to become president and publisher of the Los Angeles Times on June 1. Johnson will succeed John P. Puerner, 53, who said in March he was leaving to take a career break.

Murphy, a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, has held many jobs with Tribune since joining the company in 1977; he was instrumental in building Tribune’s national advertising sales network.

“He will be a great addition to our senior management team,” Johnson said.