David Ross has remained in the same journalism job for 40 years, an achievement he never expected.
“I didn’t think it would last this long,” said Ross, who serves as editor of two community weekly newspapers, the Valley Roadrunner, covering Valley Center, and the Times-Advocate, covering Escondido.
“I never really wanted to be a star in the news business,” Ross told Times of San Diego. “I only wanted to be the local hometown editor. But, I never planned to stay in the same job for 40 years.”
Ross was recently honored by County Supervisor Jim Desmond with the North County Newsmaker of the Year award. In a statement, Desmond lauded Ross’ 40-year “commitment to truthful reporting and community service” after authoring more than 60,000 articles.
Ross’ first day as editor of the Roadrunner was May 2, 1984, when he agreed to serve while editor-and-publisher Van Quackenbush recovered from back surgery. Quackenbush founded the newspaper in 1974.
“In my mind, I was only sitting-in for Van on a temporary basis,” Ross said. “My temporary job has lasted a bit longer than I first anticipated.”
Ross was born in Montebello, in Los Angeles County. His family moved to San Diego County in 1969, and he graduated from Ramona High School in 1973.
For three years, while in high school, he served as editor of “Dog Tales,” the high school newspaper named after the school mascot, the Bulldogs. He also served for a semester as editor of the Telescope, the student newspaper at Palomar College when he attended there.
“I was hired as a stringer by the Ramona Sentinel and worked there for a few years along with the crew printing the paper and as a freelancer,” Ross said. “Then, in 1983, the owners sold the paper and I left the Sentinel to help found a competitor called The Ramona News.
“When I quit the Sentinel, I wrote an inflammatory resignation letter that began: ‘Greetings: To all those who have reached their level of incompetence in this organization,’ and it rapidly went downhill from there. I made about a dozen copies and distributed them around the office. This became a source of much amusement around town and briefly got me sued for libel, until they realized I had no money and the lawsuit was dropped.
“I once tried to get a job at the old Escondido Times-Advocate. But, I had become so notorious with the Ramona News that I was told by a reporter at the paper who put in a good word for me that he was told, ‘I wouldn’t hire that guy if he was the last journalist on earth.'”
It’s no surprise that Ross’ editorials in the Roadrunner and T-A are titled, “The Curmudgeon, David’s Crazy Opinion.”
Ross also is known for pithy clichés that appear as part of his email signature lines.
Recent ones include: “I can handle big news and little news. And if there’s no news, I’ll go out and bite a dog,” which was said by actor Kirk Douglas in a 1951 movie “The Big Circus;” and “This is the West, sir. When the truth becomes fact, print the legend,” which was said by actor Carleton Young in a 1962 movie with Jimmy Stewart “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.”
Over the years, Ross has won hundreds of “Excellence in Journalism” writing awards from the San Diego Press Club, including more than 100 first-place awards. At the most recent awards event, Ross won awards in the “humor,” “commentary” and “political column” categories.
In 1991, Ross won another first-place writing award when he sheltered with a family in their home during a wildfire. “There was a wildfire in the Yellow Brick Road area of Valley Center and the firefighters told me they would surround a home to protect it as the fire moved through. They advised me to wait inside the house with the family. Their cat was wandering around in a panic.”
The headline of the story read, “The Angel of Fire Passes Leaving a House Unharmed.”
“I like to win awards so I can show younger people in the business that I still know what I’m doing,” Ross said.
His favorite advice to newbie reporters includes, “Don’t put your trust in politicians,” “Don’t stand under power lines that have been melted by wildfires,” “Don’t take photos of FBI agents” and “Always double-check the spelling of every name, especially Smith or Jones.”
In his editor role, Ross is an influential voice in the Valley Center and Escondido communities.
“It took me a while to realize how important community journalism is to the life of a small town, or even a good-size town,” Ross said. “I think there is a connection between vital, healthy communities and communities with a local newspaper, or more than one.
“Local journalism engages its readers with their civic life, with their schools, with their local governments and with local people who are accomplishing great things and trying to do good in the world. Often, we are the only source of reliable information for our readers about things that affect them directly.”
One of Ross’ recent editorials had the headline, “A newspaper is as a newspaper does.” He wrote, “We don’t hew to the right or hew to the left. We are not a Republican or Democrat paper. You might call us the Switzerland of politics.”
Another Ross editorial stated, “It’s your duty to run for office.” He wrote, “As a citizen of your community, you could do worse than to decide to serve your fellows and run for office. The school board, water board and even the purely advisory job of planning group member are positions of great responsibility because they are closest to the people.”
Ross will turn 70 years old on Jan. 5. He has no plans to retire.
“As big daily papers decline in readership, readers of local news have stayed pretty stable. We provide the kind of news they can’t get online from anyone else. And, unlike many Facebook pages, we only report facts and actually do reporting, which is different from just printing rumors.”
Luna Grill Chain Hires Top Marketer from Lazy Dog
San Diego-based Luna Grill, founded in 2004, has hired Billy Grenham as the company’s first chief marketing officer. A statement said Grenham’s appointment is a strategic management addition to further propel the brand’s growth.
Previously, Grenham was CMO at Lazy Dog Restaurant & Bar, a chain of casual dining restaurants with more than 40 outlets across several states, including California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Nevada, Texas and Virginia.
Prior to Lazy Dog, Grenham spent nearly five years in the fitness industry with positions as CMO at both CycleBar and Chuze Fitness.
From 2014 to 2019, Grenham worked with Rich Pinnella, president of Luna Grill, at Yum! Brands in various capacities, including head of global marketing and communications for Taco Bell. Grenham led the global brand vision, growth & omni-channel sales strategies for Taco Bell International restaurants spanning 26 countries, growing from 75 restaurants to now over 1,000.
“Billy has a unique experience portfolio in lifestyle marketing and brand development for world class organizations such as Yum! Brands, Pepisco and CycleBar,” said Pinnella. “He is one of the most observant marketers I have ever worked with and understands how to make brands very relevant to current culture. These skills are invaluable as we expand our footprint. The timing couldn’t be better.”
“I have been watching Luna Grill grow over the past few years and everything they stand for is spot-on, good food that is good for you,” said Grenham. “Our consumer landscape is shifting to that direction and I’m so excited to be part of that shift.”
Now operating 52 restaurants in Southern California and the Dallas-Fort Worth areas, Luna Grill features a fresh Mediterranean cuisine that includes kabob plates, gourmet salads, appetizers that include hummus and falafel, wraps, desserts, craft beer and wine. A statement says the chain plans to open a restaurant every other month during 2025.
MindgruveMacarta Parnters with EMARKETER in Latin America
MindgruveMacarta, a San Diego-based marketing agency, reports it has become one of EMARKETER’s first retail media data partners in Latin America. A statement said the partnership will enable EMARKETER to share MindgruveMacarta’s extensive retail media data, providing benchmarks enabling brands to evaluate performance and advance strategy in Latin America.
“EMARKETER partners with the leading data providers around the world and we’re honored to be one of the first agencies to provide retail media data for LATAM,” said Mike Hodges, president of MindgruveMacarta. “Our partnership with EMARKETER LATAM highlights our commitment to excellence and our expertise in the field. We look forward to sharing more insights and contributing to the growth of the retail media industry in Latin America.”
“With retail media experiencing significant growth in Latin America, our collaboration with multiple industry leaders, including MindgruveMacarta, is essential for understanding evolving market dynamics,” stated Monica Peart, senior VP of data products, EMARKETER. “Leveraging comprehensive data from various pioneers in the retail media space allows us to equip brands with the actionable intelligence needed to navigate this rapidly changing environment effectively.”
J/PR Now Representing Villa Santa Cruz in Mexico
San Diego-based J/PR, previously known as J Public Relations, has announced it is now representing Villa Santa Cruz, a 24-room beachfront resort in Todos Santos in Baja California, Mexico.
J/PR will be involved in publicizing renovations at the 20-acre resort, which include new oceanfront tented ocean suits, meeting space, equestrian stables and stargazing at an observatory tower.
Founded in 2005, J/PR operates offices in San Diego, New York City, Los Angeles, Nashville, Denver and Scottsdale, Ariz., as well as Toronto and London.
Rick Griffin is a San Diego-based public relations and marketing consultant. His MarketInk column appears weekly on Mondays in Times of San Diego.
