Challen Stephens, who led the AL.com newsroom to three Pulitzer Prizes in the last five years, has been named vice president of content and editor in chief of Alabama Media Group, the company announced Wednesday.

Natalie Pruitt, the president of Alabama Media Group, informed AL.com staffers of Stephens’ promotion on Wednesday morning.

“Challen’s leadership has helped define a new era of journalism in Alabama. His commitment to fearless reporting and his ability to guide teams through complex, high-impact investigations have earned national recognition and deep trust from our readers,” Pruitt said. “Just as important, he brings a sharp strategic mind and a deep understanding of our business, making him the right person to lead us forward. I’m proud to see him step into this role.”

A native of Pennsylvania, Stephens has worked for Advance Local in Alabama for 30 years, starting at The Huntsville Times in 1995. He spent decades covering education, criminal justice and politics in Alabama. A graduate of Dartmouth College, he spent a year as a Knight-Wallace Fellow at the University of Michigan and earned a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Missouri.

Stephens’ reporting on police and schools won numerous honors over the years, including awards from Investigative Reporters and Editors, Education Writers Association, and the White House Correspondents Association. In 2021, Stephens was a lead reporter on the team that won the Pulitzer Prize for national reporting for examining the severity of widespread injuries from police K9s. He was the editor on two year-long projects for AL.com that each earned a Pulitzer Prize in 2023, one for local reporting and another for commentary. One exposed a corrupt police department and another examined how Alabama’s legacy on race affects the state today.

Stephens has served as acting editor in chief since March. Stephens replaces Hollis Towns, who left earlier this year to pursue other opportunities.

His first official day in the new role will be today.

“It’s a privilege to lead the largest newsroom in this state,” Stephens said. “Alabama is a unique place, where deep reporting can really make a difference. And this is a talented group, a group that knows how to report on Alabama in a way that makes sense to Alabamians. We’ll keep doing that.”

“We’ll also find the fun stories that people can’t help but talk about, and as always we’ll be fast, and we’ll go wherever the news take us in our state.”

Most recently Stephens was senior news director and investigative editor for AL.com – leading one of the largest teams of investigative journalists in the southeast. He also has had a national role as director of investigations for news outlets across Advance Local.

Alabama Media Group, which publishes AL.com, has more than 100 Alabama-based journalists located throughout the state. Besides AL.com — the state’s largest digital news site — AMG also produces This is Alabama, It’s a Southern Thing, the Alabama Ed Lab and the digital editions of the Birmingham News, Huntsville Times and Mobile Press-Register.