BOISE, Idaho (AP) The McClatchy Company has restructured the newsroom leadership positions at the Idaho Statesman, eliminating the executive editor position held by Rhonda Prast and naming Nate Poppino as interim local editor.

The Idaho Statesman reports the decision was announced in the newsroom on Monday by McClatchy west region editor Lauren Gustus.

Gustus said Prast’s departure was a cost decision and not related to her performance. She said the restructuring was done with the goal of retaining as many local reporting resources as possible.

Prast arrived at the Statesman in 2016 from the Kansas City Star. Under her leadership the Statesman saw double-digit growth in digital audiences and tackled tough environmental and political topics including a six-month project on Idaho’s salmon populations, an exploration of abuse in the Catholic Church and the story behind the Boise Police Department’s worst shooting in years.

Poppino is a University of Idaho graduate who started his career as a reporter at the Times-News in Twin Falls. He served in a variety of roles there, including a brief stint as interim editor. He came to the Statesman in 2013, working first as breaking news editor for four years.

Statesman Publisher Rebecca Poynter said in a prepared statement that readers can continue to expect the Statesman to be a “leader in covering breaking news and in doing accountability journalism in this region. We’re excited for Nate to lead the newsroom and deliver local journalism that is essential to Boise.”

Gustus said Poppino has led the newspaper’s reporters on several projects, noting the Statesman’s fact-check stories on Idaho’s gubernatorial candidates and stories about how Idaho residents are coping with the rising cost of living.

McClatchy owns 30 news organizations across the country.

___

Information from: Idaho Statesman, http://www.idahostatesman.com