The Daytona Beach News-Journal has hired Rana Cash as executive editor, the publication announced on Monday. Cash is returning to her roots in Central Florida, where she’ll also serve as the leader of statewide investigations for the USA Today Network-Florida region.
“This is a homecoming,” Cash said in an announcement by the News-Journal. “It gives me a foundation to come in and get started and press the gas right away. I know the people, I know the culture, I know the weather. I want to learn what’s on the minds of people now, what’s important and what they need, but I don’t want to come in with any assumptions.”
Prior to embarking on her journalistic career, Cash spent many of her formative years in Central Florida. She was born in Sanford, and is a 20-year homeowner in DeBary. Cash attended Seminole High School in Sanford and Florida A&M University in Tallahassee. Her career began with the Miami Herald in 1993, before moving to the Dallas Morning News in 2000 and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2003.
From 2010 to 2016 Cash worked for Sporting News as a deputy sports editor and senior editor. Having specialized in coverage of the NFL, she then took that expertise to the Star Tribute as NFL Editor/Team Leader.
Following a stint at Savannah Morning News, Cash began a five-year run as Executive Editor of The Charlotte Observer. She wrapped up that tenure in May of this year, paving the way for her return to Florida journalism. While in Charlotte, Cash’s newsroom was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for its coverage of Hurricane Helene in 2025.
“Welcoming such an experienced leader of Rana’s caliber is a huge coup,” said Wendy Fullerton Powell, the VP & Region Editor of the USA TODAY Network-Florida Region. “Rana has a track record of raising the bar and elevating the journalism, making strong newsrooms even better. She’s the perfect fit to lead our Daytona newsroom.”
Cash takes the executive editor mantle from John Dunbar, who was named to the position in July 2022. In February, Dunbar was hired as an investigative reporter for the Sarasota-based Suncoast Searchlight.
