Former editor-in-chief of the ‘Australian’ and ‘South China Morning Post’ David Armstrong (62) has been appointed chairman of Post Media as part of a major editorial and commercial reshuffle at the Cambodian publisher.

He was most recently president and chief operating officer of Post Publishing, the owner of the ‘Bangkok Post’ in Thailand

Publisher Ross Dunkley says the company had been searching for a chairman for some time. “In the end choosing David Armstrong was simple. He’s one of only a handful in the world today who can claim to have successfully straddled the media both in the East and the West,” he says.

Dunkley says Armstrong has already “put his stethoscope” over the group’s media assets in both Myanmar and Cambodia.

Post Media says Australian miner and entrepreneur Bill Clough – whose father Harold is also a shareholder and former director of West Australian Newspapers – is stepping down as chairman but will remain as a director and major shareholder.

Armstrong brings to the group more than 40 years’ experience in journalism and newspaper management at the highest level in Australia and South East Asia as it eyes a second phase of aggressive growth. “The company has come a long way in a very challenging financial and media environment, and as we move into our third year of operations we are delighted to have David on board,” says Dunkley.

“We have already successfully turned the ‘Phnom Penh Post’ into Cambodia’s first international-standard daily and launched a sister publication that is rapidly gaining market share in a crowded Khmer-language market.

“But there is still plenty of untapped opportunity, and David will guide our new-look team as we move forward to capture them.”