William James Mortimer

Last updated May 23, 2023

William James Mortimer (died May 20, 2010), sometimes known as Jim Mortimer, was the publisher, president and editor of the Deseret News from 1985 to 1996 and publisher of the newspaper from 1996 to 2000.

Biography

Mortimer graduated from Logan High School, received his bachelor's degree from Utah State University and journalism degree from Columbia University. After serving as a U.S. Army second lieutenant during the Korean War, he returned to Utah and married Paula Ann Deline.

Mortimer's first involvement with the Deseret News began at age 12 when he started as a carrier delivering the paper. He also worked part-time in the Logan bureau of the Deseret News during college. His career in printing and publishing started with the Deseret News in 1957 when he accepted a position as a reporter, then later became Assistant Business Editor. He then became Sales Manager at the Deseret News Press, then Senior Account Executive for Wheelwright Lithographing Company. He enjoyed 13 years at Deseret Book where he served as Vice President and General Manager for much of the 1970s. In 1979, Jim returned to the Deseret News Press. He was appointed Publisher, President and Editor of the Deseret News in 1985. His involvement with "Deseret" companies led to his appellation as "Deseret Jim." He retired in 2000.

He was very active in the community serving in many positions including president of the Printing Industries of Utah, a board member of Printing Industries of America, president of the Downtown Retail Merchants of Salt Lake, president of the Utah Retail Merchants Association, executive vice president of the Great Salt Lake Council Boy Scouts of America, chairman of Salt Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, chairman of the board at Pioneer Memorial Theatre, chairman of the Utah Partnership for Education and Economic Development, chairman of the board for Prevent Blindness Utah Chapter—now Friends for Sight, executive committee member for Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau, board member of the Utah Symphony, president of the Salt Lake Kiwanis Club, lieutenant governor of Utah-Idaho District of Kiwanis International, president of Utah Press Association, board member of the Utah State University Alumni Association, chairman of Utah State University journalism department advisory board, an honorary colonel of Utah National Guard, and a member of the Guard’s executive board. He chaired the first United Way campaign to raise $1,000,000.

Awards included Distinguished Citizen of the Year 1995 for the Boy Scouts of America, an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree from Utah State University and election to the Utah Printer’s Hall of Fame in 2010 for his significant contribution to the printing industry.

Mortimer was an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Latter-day Saint. His callings in the LDS Church included a Regional Representative,a Stake Patriarch, Stake President, Bishop and Executive Secretary of the Youth Correlation Committee. He also served as secretary to the LDS Church Scriptures Publication Committee from 1972 to 1981. The members of the committee were Thomas S. Monson, Boyd K. Packer and Bruce R. McConkie. Mortimer was responsible for supervising the typesetting, printing and binding of the (then) new Latter-day Saint Edition of the King James version of the Bible and the new triple combination.

Mortimer died in Salt Lake City at age 77 on May 20, 2010, after a long illness. He was survived by his wife and seven children.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas S. Monson</span> President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

Thomas Spencer Monson was an American religious leader, author, and the 16th President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As president, he was considered by adherents of the religion to be a prophet, seer, and revelator. Monson's early career was as a manager at the Deseret News, a Utah newspaper owned by the LDS Church. He spent most of his life engaged in various church leadership positions and public service.

Gordon Bitner Hinckley was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from March 1995 until his death in January 2008 at age 97. Considered a prophet, seer, and revelator by church members, Hinckley was the oldest person to preside over the church in its history until Russell M. Nelson surpassed his age in 2022.

Neal Ash Maxwell was an American scholar, educator, and religious leader who served as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1981 until his death.

Jeffrey Roy Holland is an American educator and religious leader. He served as the ninth President of Brigham Young University (BYU) and is a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, Holland is accepted by the church as a prophet, seer, and revelator. Currently, he is the fourth most senior apostle in the church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Russell M. Nelson</span> President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Russell Marion Nelson Sr. is an American religious leader and retired surgeon who is the 17th and current president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Nelson was a member of the LDS Church's Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for nearly 34 years, and was the quorum president from 2015 to 2018. As church president, Nelson is recognized by the church as a prophet, seer, and revelator.

<i>The Salt Lake Tribune</i> Daily newspaper in Salt Lake City, Utah

The Salt Lake Tribune is a newspaper published in the city of Salt Lake City, Utah. The Tribune is owned by The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc., a non-profit corporation. The newspaper's motto is "Utah's Independent Voice Since 1871."

Marvin Jeremy Ashton was a Utah politician and a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1971 until his death in 1994.

The Deseret News is the oldest continuously operating publication in the American west. Its multi-platform products feature journalism and commentary across the fields of politics, culture, family life, faith, sports, and entertainment. The Deseret News is based in Salt Lake City, Utah and is published by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The publication's name is from the geographic area of Deseret identified by Utah's pioneer settlers, and much of the publication's reporting is rooted in that region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles W. Penrose</span> American Mormon leader (1832–1925)

Charles William Penrose was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1904 to 1911. Penrose was also a member of the First Presidency, serving as a counselor to church presidents Joseph F. Smith and Heber J. Grant from 1911 until his death.

John Andreas Widtsoe was a Norwegian-American scientist, author, and religious leader who was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1921 until his death in 1952.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Albert Smith</span> President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

George Albert Smith Sr. was an American religious leader who served as the eighth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

William Bowker Preston was the fourth Presiding Bishop of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1884 and 1907.

Frederick James Pack was a professor of geology at the University of Utah and Brigham Young College and a writer on the deleterious effects of tobacco on human health. Pack was also a leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, serving as the chairman of the Gospel Doctrine Committee of the church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conrad B. Harrison</span>

Conrad Bullen Harrison was the 28th mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah, United States, from 1974 to 1976. He was appointed as a replacement for Jake Garn, who was elected to the United States Senate in 1974.

John Max Madsen is a general authority of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He has been a general authority since 1992.

Osborne John Peder Widtsoe was principal of the Latter-day Saints University in Salt Lake City, Utah and a professor of English at the University of Utah. He was also the first missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to serve in Rarotonga.

John Francis Fitzpatrick was the publisher of The Salt Lake Tribune from 1924 to 1960. He created the Newspaper Agency Corporation (NAC) in 1952.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wendell J. Ashton</span>

Wendell Jeremy Ashton was publisher of the Deseret News and director of the Public Communications Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was the elder brother of church apostle Marvin J. Ashton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clark Gilbert</span>

Clark G. Gilbert has been a general authority seventy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since April 2021 and the Church Commissioner of Education since August of that year. He was the president of BYU–Pathway Worldwide (BYU–PW), an online higher education organization, from its creation in 2017 until August 2021. He was serving as the sixteenth president of Brigham Young University–Idaho (BYU–Idaho) when he was appointed inaugural president of BYU–PW. Previously, Gilbert served as president and CEO of both the Deseret News and Deseret Digital Media, having also served as an executive vice president of Deseret Management Corporation, a professor at Harvard Business School (HBS), and as an associate academic vice president at BYU–Idaho.

Brent Ferrin Ashworth is an American historical document dealer who specializes in Mormon history. He has assisted the Glenn Beck organization, the LDS Church History Library, Brigham Young University (BYU) Library Special Collections, the Utah Valley University (UVU) Library Special Collections, State History Division, including the Utah State Archives and other major institutions. He has recently assisted Beck with his first three history museums, starting with "Man in the Moon" at the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City, over the July 4th holiday in 2013, and the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Kennedy Assassination in conjunction with the Mercury One Convention at the Omni Hotel in Dallas, Texas, in November 2013. Ashworth has donated many books and other items in his collection to the LDS Church and his items have been displayed at the Crandall Historical Printing Museum in Provo, Utah.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.