RAPID CITY - Rosanne Cheeseman, publisher of the Rapid City Journal, announced today that she is leaving parent company Lee Enterprises at the end of September to become president and chief executive officer of Times Publishing Co. and publisher of the Erie Times-News in Erie, Pa.

"The opportunity was unexpected, and this was a very tough decision to make," she said. "Lee Enterprises is a company I respect and admire. I've enjoyed living and working in Rapid City, and the people have been terrific. I will especially miss the staff of the Rapid City Journal and the beauty of my home state. It's hard to leave, but this is an opportunity that I just can't pass up."

Times Publishing Co. is a privately held media company with interests in newspapers, electronic publishing cable and related communications businesses. Its divisions include Erie Times-News, a recent recipient of the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association Foundation's "Newspaper of the Year" award. Online divisions include the region's leading website, www.goerie.com, and CyberInk, which focuses on online innovation, research and development.

Cheeseman, 53, has been publisher in Rapid City since November, and had served as Lee's vice president for sales and marketing since 2004. She previously was advertising director and associate publisher of the North County Times in Oceanside/Escondido, Calif. Before that, she served as director of sales development for Lee's daily newspapers, weeklies and shoppers. She joined Lee in 1998.

Greg R. Veon, Lee vice president for publishing, said a search for a successor in Rapid City would begin immediately. "Rosanne has been a terrific leader for Lee," he said. "She has helped drive revenue successes all across our company, and we'll miss her very much."

Lee Enterprises, based in Davenport, Iowa, operates 51 daily newspapers and has a joint interest in five others. The company also has rapidly growing online sites and more than 300 weekly newspapers and specialty publications in 23 states.

Lee's newspapers have circulation of 1.7 million daily and 1.9 million Sunday. Lee's online sites attract more than 11 million visits monthly, and Lee's weekly publications are distributed to more than 4.5 million households.