05/10/2005

Victor Simpson named AP bureau chief in Rome

NEW YORK -- Victor Simpson, news editor for The Associated Press in Rome, has been promoted to chief of bureau there.

The announcement was made May 10 by Deborah Seward, AP's international editor.

As chief of bureau, Simpson will be responsible for directing coverage in Italy, including the Vatican.

Simpson joined The Associated Press in Newark, New Jersey, in 1967. He transferred to the General Desk in 1970 and the Foreign Desk two years later. He was appointed news editor in Rome in 1972.

He covered the entire papacy of the late John Paul II, traveling with the globe-trotting pope on most of his foreign trips. During his three decades overseas, Simpson also has covered the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, as well as Anwar Sadat's groundbreaking visit to Israel.

A native of New York City, Simpson holds a degree in political science and economics from Hobart College in Geneva, New York.

contact: Jack Stokes, AP Corporate Communications, 212.621.1720