Jonathan Segal, president of Freedom Communications Inc.’s newspaper division and a former editor of The Free Press, will retire June 30 after 40 years with the company, Freedom announced Monday from its headquarters in Irvine, Calif. Freedom owns The Free Press.

Mark McEachen, Freedom’s chief financial officer, will assume Segal’s duties. McEachen also is overseeing Freedom’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. The company is expected to exit bankruptcy in the next few weeks.

As president of the newspapers division, Segal oversaw operations of the company’s more than 100 daily and weekly newspapers nationwide.

“With the company’s Chapter 11 process coming to a close and the worst of the economic downturn behind us, this seemed like the time for me to retire,” Segal said. “The decision to leave a company I love and have been with my entire career wasn’t easy, but it’s the right time and the right thing to do. That said, Freedom has an outstanding portfolio of newspaper and television properties — and a great team of associates to run them. It has a very bright future. I wish them all the success in the world.”

Segal, 60, of Laguna Niguel, Calif., began his journalism career at the Gaston Gazette in Gastonia as a reporter. He moved to Kinston and took on the job of editor in 1973 when Freedom bought The Free Press from the Braxton family. His first job as publisher came in 1974 in New Bern, when Freedom acquired the Sun Journal, and Segal later returned to Gastonia as publisher.

He was named president of Freedom’s community newspapers division in 1999 and became president of Freedom’s newspapers division in 2007.

Patrick Holmes, editor and publisher of The Free Press, was hired as a reporter in Kinston by Segal and also worked with him in New Bern. He said Segal’s coming retirement represents the passing of an era.

“Jon worked hard to maintain and promulgate the Freedom culture, those qualities that has made this company unique among newspaper groups in both ownership and editorial philosophy,” Holmes said. “Minus his leadership, Freedom will still be a strong company, but a changed one.”

Segal serves on the board of trustees of the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association and the board of directors of the American Press Institute and the PAGE purchasing cooperative. He is a past president of the SNPA and the North Carolina Press Association.