Harlan Kirgan returns to Eunice News editor's post

Harlan Kirgan is returning to The Eunice News as its editor. He succeeds Jim Butler, who is retiring. The change is effective Sunday, March 1.
“This is truly a homecoming for me,” Kirgan said. “I appreciate the opportunity to work here again and look forward to renewing relationships.”
Since August 2012, Kirgan has served as managing editor of The Daily Review in Morgan City, which is also owned by Louisiana State Newspapers, owner of The Eunice News.
During his tenure at Morgan City, web viewership for the newspaper grew around 300 percent.
“When I left The Eunice News in July 2006 we did not have any presence on the Internet,” Kirgan said. “Now, The Eunice News staff has built a solid website. In addition, the staff here has kept alive and enhanced a tradition of local journalism in the Tri-Parish area.”
Kirgan left The Eunice News for The Mississippi Press of Pascagoula, Miss., where he served as a staff reporter and executive editor.
“My experiences in Mississippi ranged from covering the BP oil spill to a trip on the nuclear-powered attack submarine USS Mississippi prior to its commissioning in Pascagoula,” he said.
“But I’m happy to be back home and look forward to reporting stories here,” he said. “The challenge is following the great job Jim Butler has done in leading an excellent news team.”
Butler joined The Eunice News in October 2006, coming from a stint as night editor of the Gulfport Sun-Herald, where his Reporter’s Notebook was part of Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of Hurricane Katrina.
He relocated to Mississippi after retiring from the Alexandria Town Talk, where he was executive editor for 25 years.
In addition to being the Eunice editor, Butler, who turned 70 in December, has served as managing editor of LSN’s newspaper web sites.
He and his wife Bonnie plan to live in the Houston, Texas area.
Kirgan has deep roots in St. Landry Parish journalism. He worked as executive editor at the Daily World for many years.
He and his wife, Mary Jo, live in Grand Coteau. She is a teacher in Lafayette Parish.
Kirgan is a native of Missouri and a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism.