Sinead Boucher, chief executive and owner of New Zealand's Stuff is among ten new directors on WAN-Ifra's supervisory board and four on its executive board.

Sandy Prieto-Romualdez, president and chief executive of the Philippine Daily Inquirer, also joins the executive board.

Three South Asia media executives were also among 25 reappointed to new terms on WAN-Ifra's supervisory board. They are Shailesh Gupta (Jagran Prakashan, India), KN Shanth Kumar (The Printers (Mysore), India) and Sinha Ratnatunga (Wijeya Newspapers, Sri Lanka).

They were elected the association's annual assembly on Wednesday (September 16).

WAN-Ifra president and president of Spain's Henneo Group Fernando de Yarza López-Madrazo said the appointees will add diversity to the board. "Their experience in and commitment to journalism will add much to our deliberations on the way forward for the media."

Also elected to new supervisory board terms were: Jennifer Bertetto (Trib Total Media, USA), Guy Black (Telegraph Media Group, UK), Juan Jaime Díaz (El Mercurio and ANP, Chile), Majella Gallagher (Irish Examiner, Ireland), Jean-Pierre de Kerraoul (Sogemedia, and ENPA, France), Donna Hall (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, USA), Toyosi Ogunseye, (BBC World Service Africa, Nigeria), Paul Peckels (Saint-Paul Luxembourg and ALMI, Luxembourg), and Pia Rehnquist (Bonnier News Local, Sweden).

The four supervisory board members appointed to the executive board were: Sinead Boucher (Stuff, New Zealand, pictured), Valdo Lehari Jr (Reutlinger General-Anzeiger, Germany), Toyosi Ogunseye (BBC World Service Africa, Nigeria), and Sandy Prieto-Romualdez (Philippine Daily Inquirer, Philippines).

Twenty-five media executives were reappointed for a new term of office at the WAN-Ifra Supervisory Board: Eugene Abov (GIPP, Russia), Saleh Alhumaidan (WAN-Ifra Middle East Committee, Saudi Arabia), Juan Amaya (Casa Editorial El Tiempo, Colombia), Alessandro Bompieri (RCS Media Group, Italy), Oleksandr Chovhan (RIA Media Corporation Ukraine), Hans Heinrich Coninx (Schweizer Medien, Switzerland), Phillip Crawley (Globe and Mail, Canada), Daniel Dessein (La Gaceta de Tucumán, Argentina), Rolf Dyrnes Svendsen (Nxt Media Lab, Norway), Fatemah Farag (Welad ElBalad Media, Egypt), Stoyana Georgieva (Mediapool.bg, Bulgaria), Shailesh Gupta (Jagran Prakashan, India), Vesa-Pekka Kangaskorpi (Keskisuomalainen Oyj, Finland), Tibor Kovács (Ringier Axel Springer, Hungary), Shanth Kumar K N, The Printers (Mysore), India), Valdo Lehari Jr (Reutlinger General-Anzeiger, Germany), Thomas Lindner (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany), Lisa MacLeod (UK), Petru Macovei (API, Moldova), Alexander Mitteräcker (Standard Verlags, Austria), Stig Ørskov (JP/Politikens Hus, Denmark), César Pérez Barriga (El Universo, Ecuador), Sinha Ratnatunga (Wijeya Newspapers, Sri Lanka), Libuše Šmuclerová (Czech News Center, Czech Republic), and Daniel Van Wylick (Rossel & Cie and lapresse.be, Belgium).

Eight executives are departing the WAN-Ifra supervisory board after many years of service: Kevin Beatty (dmg:media, UK), Sture Bergman (VK Media, Sweden), Yildirim Demiroren (Demiroren Media Group, Turkey), José Roberto Dutriz (Grupo Dutriz, El Salvador), Liam Kavanagh (Irish Times, Ireland), Carlo Perrone (GEDI, Italy), Karin Pettersson (Aftonbladet Hierta, Sweden), and Alvin Sold (Editpress, Luxembourg).

WAN-Ifra chief executive Vincent Peyrègne said that "despite everything this moment of change brings", there is an immense opportunity. "It is a moment for us to redraw an economic model that works in the interests of professional media to continue with renewed drive and determination to serve our communities, placing the values that define us, that have been at the core of our profession.

"We are proud to stand in the promotion of professional excellence, press freedom and the freedoms of our society with our board members." He thanked them for loyal support.