Howard Owens to leave Ventura for Bakersfield

Kevin Roderick of L.A. Observed reports that Howard Owens, Director of New Media at the Ventura County (Calif.) Star, is leaving that paper to become vice president of interactive for the Bakersfield Californian.

The E.W. Scripps-owned Ventura County Star won the Online Journalism Award for General Excellence among smaller websites last year, in part for the innovative grassroots reporting and interactive applications developed under Owens' watch. The Bakersfield paper has attracted much recent attention for its landmark effort in reader-produced journalism, The Northwest Voice.