The About Group Names New CEO

The About Group, which operates about.com and is owned by The New York Times Company, has found a new CEO after searching for one since May. Starting September 1, Darline Jean, About’s current CFO, will be promoted to CEO. According to the New York Times, Jean will have her work cut out for her:

About has been struggling with declining revenue and Web traffic since Google changed both the way it directs traffic to informational sites like About.com and the way it allows those sites to collect revenue from ads that users click on. In the second quarter, About’s revenues dropped 17.3 percent to $27.8 million.

Janet L. Robinson, CEO of the Times Company, however, has complete confidence in Jean. “Darline’s experience and knowledge of the About Group makes her well suited to continue overseeing the strategic investments being made across the business unit and its response to some of the shifts taking place in the search universe,” said Robinson.

Launch a social media campaign that will build your brand and deliver results in our online Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting June 7. Speakers include Abigail Cusick (Bravo Digital), Gregory Galant (Sawhorse Media), Alex Leo (Thomson Reuters Digital), Jim Tobin (Ignite Social Media), and many more. Read the reviews.