James C. Duff, who has been president and CEO of the Freedom Forum and CEO of the Newseum and Newseum Institute since 2011, has been appointed director of the administrative office of the U.S. Courts by Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., effective January 5, 2015.

“Jim did a great job during the three years he was at the helm,” said Jan Neuharth, chair of the Freedom Forum, the non-profit foundation that built and is the largest funder of the Newseum. “We are sorry to see him move on, but thank him for the substantial progress that the Newseum and the Newseum Institute made under his leadership.”

During Duff's tenure, attendance at the Newseum continued to increase as it has done every year since it opened in 2008. Last year, the museum welcomed more than 800,000 visitors and TripAdvisor users recently ranked it among the top ten museums in the entire nation.

“It has been a great privilege to serve as CEO and president of these outstanding educational organizations,” said Duff. “The staff has done a superb job of expanding the reach of our mission to educate the public about the importance of our First Amendment liberties, both within the Newseum and beyond its walls into schools. I look forward to supporting their work through programs and outreach while back at the administrative office and throughout my career.”

Peter S. Prichard, who has been the Newseum's non-executive chair since 2011, will also begin serving as CEO of the Newseum and Newseum Institute.

A founding editor of USA Today, Prichard was the newspaper's top editor from 1988 until 1995. Prichard served as the president of the Newseum and Freedom Forum until January 2009.

“It's an honor to help lead a world-class museum,” Prichard said. “As our late founder Al Neuharth liked to say, we need to preserve the best and improve the rest. I look forward to working with one of the best museum staffs in the world to do that.”

Neuharth, a lawyer and award-winning novelist, has been the non-executive chair of the Freedom Forum since 2011 and has assumed the role of CEO of that organization. She is also president of Paper Chase Farms in Middleburg, Va.

ABOUT THE NEWSEUM

The mission of the Newseum is to champion the five freedoms of the First Amendment through education, information and entertainment. One of the top attractions in Washington, D.C., the Newseum's 250,000-square-foot news museum offers visitors a state-of-the-art experience that blends news history with up-to-the-second technology and hands-on exhibits. The Newseum Institute serves as a forum for First Amendment study, exploration and education. The Newseum is a 501(c)(3) public charity funded by generous individuals, corporations and foundations, including the Freedom Forum.

- See more at: http://www.newseum.org/press-info/press-releases/?pr=63#sthash.fKeg2nTg.dpuf