Carlton J. Charles to Join Hearst Corporation as Vice President & Treasurer; Jon D. Smith, Jr., to Retire After 25 Years With the Company

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - Oct 31, 2011) - Hearst Corporation announced today that Carlton J. Charles, an executive with 25 years of finance experience in multinational companies, most recently Moody's Corporation, will join Hearst as vice president, treasurer, effective October 31, 2011. Charles succeeds Jon D. Smith, Jr., who will retire at the end of the year after 25 years of service in Hearst Corporation's treasury department. The announcement was made by Hearst Corporation CEO Frank A. Bennack, Jr., and Ronald J. Doerfler, senior vice president, finance and administration.

"I am delighted to have an executive like Carlton with a diverse background in finance join Hearst," Bennack said. "He brings a wealth of experience in treasury management and with the growth and increased geographic diversity of our businesses, I know Carlton's experience and insights will help provide the support that our businesses need."

Charles was most recently senior vice president, treasurer and chief operational risk officer of Moody's Corporation, where he oversaw all global treasury matters for the company, including capital structure, cash management, financial risk management, insurance and corporate finance. In addition, he was responsible for the company's operational risk management efforts.

He joined Moody's in 2005 from International Paper Company where he worked for five years, first as assistant treasurer, international, and then as assistant treasurer and director, enterprise risk management. From 1997 to 1999, Charles was assistant treasurer, international, at Joseph E. Seagram & Sons, Inc., having joined that company from Viacom, Inc., where he served since 1995 as director of treasury and then vice president, international treasury. He spent seven years (1988 to 1995) at Philip Morris Management Corporation in various treasury and corporate finance roles, after having begun his career at Dean Witter Capital Markets in institutional sales in 1986.

Charles holds an MBA in finance from the University of Chicago, and a master's in public policy and a bachelor's in quantitative economics from the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

Bennack added, "At the same time, we thank Jon for his long service to Hearst. His strategic financial advice has helped us grow into the diversified corporation we are today. I wish Jon and his wife Wendy best wishes."

Smith, assistant treasurer and director of banking and corporate finance, joined Hearst in 1986. In 2001, he was appointed assistant treasurer of the William Randolph Hearst Foundation and The Hearst Foundation, Inc. Prior to Hearst, he spent nine years at Capital Cities/ABC, Inc., where he was the associate director of treasury operations. Smith attended Lafayette College and the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.

About Hearst Corporation
Hearst Corporation (www.hearst.com) is one of the nation's largest diversified media companies. Its major interests include ownership of 15 daily and 38 weekly newspapers, including the Houston Chronicle, San Francisco Chronicle, San Antonio Express-News and Albany Times Union; hundreds of magazines around the world, including Good Housekeeping, Cosmopolitan, ELLE and O, The Oprah Magazine; 29 television stations, which reach a combined 18% of U.S. viewers; ownership in leading cable networks, including Lifetime, A&E, History and ESPN; as well as business publishing, including a minority interest in Fitch Ratings; Internet and marketing services businesses, television production, newspaper features distribution and real estate.