Meet our staff

PUBLISHER
Shawn Palmer is publisher of the Athol Daily News. Prior to joining Newspapers of New England in 2021, Shawn held leadership positions at The (New London) Day, The (Danbury) News-Times, the (Meriden) Record-Journal, The Westerly Sun, The (Newark) Star-Ledger and the Hartford Courant. He earned a BA from Providence College and an MBA from Seton Hall University.

Contact: spalmer@atholdailynews.com | 413-585-5279

EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Dan Crowley is executive editor of the Athol Daily News. A Massachusetts native, he has more than two decades of experience as an award-winning investigative reporter and editor and joined the Daily News’ staff in 2021. He earned a BA from Connecticut College and an MA in journalism from Indiana University.

Contact: dcrowley@atholdailynews.com | 413-585-5239

REGIONAL CIRCULATION DIRECTOR
Mark Galat was named regional circulation director in 2025 and currently oversees subscription sales, delivery and customer service. Mark joined the Daily Hampshire Gazette in 1996 and held several roles in the circulation department before assuming his current role. Prior to the Gazette, Mark worked in the circulation departments of The Republican and the Holyoke Transcript-Telegram.

Contact: mgalat@atholdailynews.com | 413-774-2741

REGIONAL ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
Stephanie T. Hadley was named regional advertising director in 2025 overseeing the day to day sales operations and production teams for Newspapers of New England which publishes the Athol Daily News. Stephanie started at the Daily Hampshire Gazette in 2016 as creative director before being promoted to sales operations director in 2019. Prior to joining NNE, she spent 12 years working at Turley Publications in Palmer, MA.

Contact: shadley@atholdailynews.com | 413-585-5288

REGIONAL CONTROLLER
Edwin O’Connor is regional controller of the Athol Daily News and oversees all aspects of financial accounting and analysis. He is a CPA and earned a BS from the University of Massachusetts and an MS from Northeastern University.

Contact: eoconnor@atholdailynews.com | 413-585-5302

REGIONAL ADVERTISING MANAGER
Michael Templeton was named regional advertising manager of the Athol Daily News in 2025. He joined the company in 2022 as digital advertising sales manager. During his tenure, Michael has helped the sales team significantly grow digital advertising throughout the region. In his current role, he oversees all advertising revenue and works closely with the media consultants to help local businesses reach their desired audience across all platforms. Before joining the Daily News, Michael held sales and sales management roles at Comcast Business and The Republican.

Contact: mtempleton@atholdailynews.com | 413-585-5274

EDITOR
Max Bowen is the editor of the Athol Daily News.  He’s worked in the news industry since 2003 as a correspondent, reporter, photographer and editor at newspapers and magazines across Massachusetts.  

Contact: mbowen@atholdailynews.com | 413-930-4074

PHOTO EDITOR
Paul Franz is the photo editor and photographer at the Athol Daily News.

Contact: pfranz@atholdailynews.com | 413-930-4128