AP CEO: News cooperative to bolster coverage, offer better rates for longer-term committments

Associated Press president and CEO Gary Pruitt has told a group of newspaper executives that the AP is taking steps to bolster its news coverage while offering more affordable rates.

AP CEO and president Gary Pruitt says the news cooperative is working to shore up its staff, put more stories on the wire, improve news coverage and invest more in video in an increasingly digital media landscape.

Pruitt made the comments Tuesday in Nashville at a convention for the Newspaper Association of America.

The CEO said he knew firsthand the pressures newspapers are under.

The AP has reduced assessments by 40 percent over the last several years while offering more choices and services to customers. Pruitt said more changes are coming as AP works to give members a "meaningful incentive" for longer-term commitments.