Lebhar-Friedman appoints Koteff editor of NRN

Nation's Restaurant News, Jan 3, 2005

NEW YORK -- Nation's Restaurant News, the flagship publication of Lebhar-Friedman Inc., based here, recently announced the appointment of Ellen M. Koteff as its editor in chief.

Koteff joined NRN as managing editor in 1992 and subsequently was promoted to the post of executive editor.

During her tenure at NRN, Koteff, who holds a bachelor of science degree in journalism from the University of Florida, has steered the weekly foodservice publication to coveted Jesse H. Neal National Business Journalism Awards for "Best Single Issue" in 2002 and 2004. She also is the recipient of the 2002 McAllister Editorial Fellowship, an award administered through the Business Press Educational Foundation.

As part of the fellowship, Koteff worked with journalism students in the magazine program at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism in Evanston, III. She was chosen as the fellowship winner over 22 other editors who also had won Neal Awards that year.

"Ellen is a consummate editor and journalist," said Alan Gould, publisher of NRN. "She is responsible for many of the recent editorial successes of this publication, and we look forward to seeing her bring about more innovation and more great issues in the years to come."

Koteff, who was named editor last month, credited her staff for much of the success that NRN has garnered and said she is excited about the publication's future.

"Working with the extremely skilled and professional editorial team at Nation's Restaurant News for the last 12 and a half years has been a very rewarding experience," she stated. "The amount of energy, expertise and dedication exhibited by NRN's editors never ceases to amaze me. I look forward to continuing our work to make this magazine the best news vehicle in business-to-business publishing."

As editor of NRN, Koteff is responsible for the editorial content and direction of the weekly newsmagazine. Under her watch, several new features have been added to the publication, including a highly regarded Human Resources section and the new Health and Nutrition department, which will be featured on a biweekly basis.

Before joining NRN, Koteff served as metro editor for the Parsippany Daily Record in Parsippany, N.J., and as editor of the Palm Beach Daily News in Palm Beach, Fla. She also has contributed to Vanity Fair magazine, Palm Beach Life, The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, Women's Wear Daily and Time magazine.

In addition, Koteff is a member of the Women's Foodservice Forum, an organization dedicated to furthering the careers of female executives in the foodservice industry. She is the former vice president of the International Foodservice Editorial Council, or IFEC, and has been a jury member of the International Foodservice and Manufacturers Association's Silver Plate Committee.