Veteran newspaper publisher Wolf Rosenberg, who served as publisher for the Chico Enterprise-Record for 13 years, passed away in his Sacramento home surrounded by family on June 22.
Former colleagues, competitors and community members remembered Rosenberg the same way: as a fierce supporter of community journalism who took delight in representing the newspaper around town.
“What I remember most about Wolf was the way he interacted with community,” said David Little, former Enterprise-Record editor who was hired by Rosenberg in 1999. “He was one of those publishers who felt it was important to be a figurehead for the newspaper and to represent the newspaper in the community. He joined everything, every service club, organization, the chamber. He’d go to meetings and talk to people about the newspaper. He was the newspaper’s ambassador out in the community. You don’t see that much in newspapers anymore.”
Laura Urseny, former Enterprise-Record business reporter, remembers Rosenberg as a “strong leader who took the newspaper through tough times.”
“He was always supportive of community newspapers like the Enterprise-Record,” said Urseny. “He knew what a valuable role they played.”
The veteran publisher was born in the Hohne-Belsen Displaced Persons Camp in Lohheide, Germany in 1947. He immigrated to the United States with his parents when he was 3 years old. Born in July, Rosenberg was just shy of his 77th birthday when he passed away.
Rosenberg was a veteran of the United States Air Force serving from 1966 to 1970 in active duty and then from 1970 to 1972 as a reservist. Following his honorable discharge from active duty, Rosenberg attended San Jose State University where he earned his bachelor’s degree in advertising.
Following his graduation, Rosenberg began his life-long career in the newspaper business in the mid-1970s when he went to work in advertising at the Merced Sun-Star. From the Sun Star, Rosenberg went on to serve as publisher for the Los Banos Enterprise, Turlock Journal and the Chula Vista newspapers but spent the majority of his career, from 1996 to 2009, as the publisher of the Enterprise-Record.
Rick Silva, editor of the Red Bluff Daily News, met Rosenberg in 2003 just after he’d been promoted from sports editor to managing editor of the Paradise Post and Media News Group, the company that owned the Enterprise-Record, purchased the Post.
Silva remembers Rosenberg as not only supportive during the transition, but also continuously supportive of community newspapers. During a time when the newspaper industry was apprehensive of transitioning from print to online, Silva said Rosenberg assisted with the transition and helped find a balance between the two.
“He was a great guy,” Silva said. “I liked working with Wolf.”
Carol Peterson also met Rosenberg in 2003 when she was promoted to publisher of the Post.
Describing herself as a “naive kid” in need of guidance in her new role, Peterson reached out to Rosenberg. Despite having a busy schedule, Rosenberg equipped her with the information and mentoring she needed, Peterson said.
“What comes to mind is what a supportive and good newspaper executive he was, and how supportive he was to me personally,” Peterson said. “You know, in spite of the fact that we were competition, he was just a very kind and smart man.”
Another competitor, Dino Corbin, general manager of Deer Creek Broadcasting, remembered Rosenberg as “fair, honest and having an infectious personality.”
“So one thing that we always enjoyed about Wolf was that he laughed a lot, he smiled a lot, he cared a lot,” said Corbin. “He was a great competitor but most importantly, a great friend.”
Former Chico city councilor Bob Evans met Rosenberg when they were both members of Chico Rotary. They became and remained good friends through the years often taking weekend trips together with their wives.
“He was so gregarious, fun loving and very witty,” said Evans. “He was a good guy to get to know.”
Following his many years at the Enterprise-Record, Rosenberg went on to work as advertising manager and then vice president of advertising for the California Newspaper Publishers Association in Sacramento.
Following his retirement from the CNPA, Rosenberg enjoyed traveling with his wife, Suzi. The couple visited Kenya, South Africa, Ireland, Australia and Italy among other places. He also enjoyed spending time with his family and cheering on his two favorite sports teams: The San Francisco Giants and the San Francisco 49ers.
Rosenberg is survived by his wife of 52 years and their sons, Aaron Rosenberg and Jeremy Rosenberg and his three grandchildren Joseph, Jack and Madeline Rosenberg.
Milca Elvira Chicon contributed to this article.