Sallie Hofmeister, deputy biz editor since 2006, has been promoted to the top spot. She has been in charge of the paper's entertainment and technology coverage and received kudos from Editor Russ Stanton for the paper’s coverage of the writers strike. Here's a snippet from Stanton's memo:

Sallie had the unenviable task of leading our coverage of the sale of Tribune Co., a hugely stressful 17-month saga that she handled with characteristic style and grace. Amid all the tumult inside the paper, and amid the usual drama of the entertainment community, Sallie still found time to handle enterprise stories, including a groundbreaking project that detailed the finances and budget breakdown of the movie "Sahara." The unusual presentation of graphics, photos, smaller chunks of text and Web features made it an instant hit both in print and online.