Paul Read, publisher of the Journal of Business, has been elected president of the Alliance of Area Business Publishers, a national nonprofit organization representing 55 independent magazine and newspaper members in the U.S., Canada, and Australia.

Read, 55, formally took over the one-year post in late June during an annual three-day AABP summer conference in Dallas, moving up after serving a one-year term as the organization’s vice president.

Also at the conference, the Journal received a silver award in the small-publication “best scoop” category of the AABP’s 2017 Editorial Excellence competition. The recognition was for a story by veteran Journal reporter Mike McLean about plans by Costco Wholesale Corp. to move its busy north Spokane store a few miles north into an unincorporated area of the county.

The Alliance presented 111 awards to member publications on June 24 at the summer conference. The competition recognizes excellence in journalism, photography, and design achieved by regional business publications.

Read has been the Journal’s publisher since January 2012, when he replaced Greg Bever, who retired. A Spokane native and Eastern Washington University graduate, Read started work at the Journal as assistant editor when it was founded in 1986 and served in that capacity until becoming operations manager about a year before taking over as publisher. He previously had served as managing editor of the Spokane Business Examiner.