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New Outlook Editor, Burton Cole
Award-winning journalist and columnist Burton Cole has accepted the position of editor of The Outlook. His humor column, “Life in the Cole Bin,” has appeared in The Outlook for the past year.
He replaces Carolyn Reid, who is going into semi-retirement but will continue to cover government and other stories for The Outlook.
“I am excited about taking on this new challenge,” Cole said. “I’ve always been on staff at daily newspapers that cover national and international news as well as local communities. I love the idea of working on a weekly newspaper that focuses on hometown news. I want to help share the lives, triumphs and events of Pendleton County residents.”
Cole, 64, was features editor of the Tribune Chronicle in Warren, Ohio, and The Vindicator in Youngstown, Ohio. While in Warren for nearly 28 years, Cole also served as a reporter, copy editor, photo editor and assistant metro editor.
He began his career in newspapers in 1982 at the Star-Beacon in Ashtabula, Ohio, and also wrote and edited news and features for the Record-Courier in Ravenna, Ohio, and the Herald & Review in Decatur, Ill., before landing in Warren.
Cole earned his journalism degree in 1982 from Kent State University and has focused on human interest stories throughout his career.
He has won numerous writing awards, including Best Feature Writer in the Ohio Associated Press Media Editors awards and first place for humor in print in the National Society of Newspaper Columnists contest, both in 2023. His other awards include a Pulitzer Prize nomination in 1990 for a study of infant mortality in Macon County, Ill.
An author, Cole also won the Selah Award in 2015 for Best Middle Grade Novel for his book “Bash and the Chicken Coop Caper,” the second installment of the “Bash and the Pirate Pig” series published by B&H Kids, Lifeway Christian Resources.
Outside the office, Cole served the Bible Methodist Church in West Mecca (Cortland), Ohio, as song leader/worship leader for 30 years. He also served as church treasurer and a board member during his time there.
A recent widower, Cole has a daughter, Melissa Cole, a stepson, Jeremy Heidrich, and a grandson, Sebastian Cole, all of Ohio. A son, Joshua Cole, is deceased.