by Elizabeth Gehling

Of the Gleaner

Starting as the Assistant Editor at The Gleaner, Amy Gilligan has moved up in the world to become the new executive editor for Dubuque’s Telegraph Herald (TH).

“(It’s) a bit of a dream come true,” said Gilligan. “If you had asked me in high school what job I wanted, I would have said the one I have right now.”

Gilligan will be the first woman executive editor and the first Dubuque native to hold the position in 90 years. She oversees the newsroom and is responsible and accountable for the editorial department and all that it entails.

Gilligan is married to Michael Shubatt and they have four children together: Cassidy, Sophia, Isabel and Eli.

For Gilligan, the position is one she’s been dreaming of for a long time. In fact, when Isabel, ‘19, first found out,  “I was in bed. I was like half asleep, so I thought I had dreamed my mom’s promotion until I saw it in the newspaper.”

“My mom has been dedicated to journalism and the TH basically since she graduated from college, so she really deserved the promotion,” said Sophia Shubatt, ‘18. “She has such passion, and she’s absolutely hilarious.”

After graduating from Wahlert, Gilligan went to Iowa State University. She then started out as a copy editor at the TH after graduation. She slowly worked her way up to managing editor, a position she held for 8½ years. Her humorous columns have been her trademark for years. Gilligan has since published two books of her columns.

“One time, when I was little, I shoved a button up my nose and almost had to go the emergency room to get it out,” said Sophia. “She later wrote a column about it. Thankfully, she didn’t say which of her daughters it was, but I guess the truth is finally coming out.”

While her humor columns have been reassigned to another write, Gilligan has recently taken over the weekly editorial column.

“I will include the nuts and bolts, but I think that I will inject my humor and my own voice,” said Gilligan. “I’ve been the number 2 for a while, so I think my vision has been a part of the direction we’ve been going for a decade.”

Gilligan officially became executive editor on Jan. 1, 2017, when Brian Cooper stepped down from the position. He will remain on staff in a reduced capacity.

Gilligan notes that the field of journalism has changed quite a bit since she started her career, and she has advice for those wanting to be journalists:

“Social media is a huge component of what we do now. Figuring out social media and using it to communicate is huge as is knowing how to use multimedia and taking pictures. A lot of reporters aren’t used to taking videos. We need all those components.”

Additionally,  “I have to also plug in with strong writing skills. Communicating effectively through writing is a big plus. The more you write, the better you get,” said Gilligan.