Former Times Publisher Named CEO of Chopra Site
Kathryn M. Downing, former publisher of the Los Angeles Times, has been appointed chief executive of Mypotential.com, a Santa Monica-based self-help start-up founded by New Age guru Deepak Chopra and his daughter Mallika, the younger Chopra said Friday.
The company Downing joined July 17 is the vision of Mallika Chopra, who bypassed her final year at Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management after investors put more than $5 million into her plan for the Web-based company.
Chopra said Downing stood out among several candidates culled through referrals and recruiters. Chopra declined to disclose Downing’s compensation.
“She was just a stellar candidate and someone we’re absolutely thrilled to have on board,” Chopra said. “She has the perfect background for us. She’s been in the online world with Lexis/Nexis. She’s been in the publishing world and the L.A. Times. And culturally she fits in well with the company.”
Downing said it was premature to discuss her new post in detail but described it as a “wonderful offer.”
Chopra said she plans to launch the company later this year. It is developing Web, television and radio programming, services and products. She declined to say how much additional financing she has received or her ultimate hiring plans. The company now employs 30, she said.
“Our ultimate goal is to create this multimedia platform to help people live healthier and more fulfilling lives, and really just extend the work that my father and a lot of the other great teachers and writers have developed in this space,” Chopra said.
Downing had been publisher since June 1999 after about a year as Times president and chief executive.
Downing was replaced as The Times’ publisher by John Puerner in April as part of the $6.38-billion takeover by Tribune Co.
Downing’s tenure at the newspaper was marked by controversy after it came to light she had agreed to split profit from a special edition of The Times Sunday magazine with Staples Center, the subject of the issue. Downing accepted full responsibility for the deal.
Before joining The Times, Downing was president and chief executive of Times Mirror’s Matthew Bender publishing unit, then of the combined Mosby Matthew Bender unit. Before joining Times Mirror in 1995, Downing had been president and chief executive of Lawyers Cooperative Publishing, a unit of Thomson Legal Publishing.
From 1990 to 1993, she was president and chief operating officer of Electronic Publishing, a unit of Thomson Professional Publishing. From 1981 to 1990, she held several posts at Mead Data Central, provider of Lexis/Nexis services.
