The Park Record welcomes Katie Hatzfeld as its new digital and breaking news editor.

She is in charge of the 140-year old newspaper’s social media and digital edition, and she will also write articles that will add to its coverage.

“I really value what everyone here is doing as journalists,” she said. “I think it’s also important to remember how long The Park Record has been around, and how much the community seems to be invested in this newspaper.”

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Hatzfeld moves to The Park Record from her post as copy editor and contributing writer for SLUG Magazine in Salt Lake City.

SLUG, an acronym for Salt Lake Underground, specializes in connecting local residents to the arts and culture scene in Salt Lake City. 

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“I was at the magazine for two years, and also worked part time as a barista at Blue Copper 2000,” she said. “In Salt Lake City the coffee, music and literary scene are all connected.”

Hatzfeld began working at SLUG after graduating with a bachelor’s degree in English and a masters degree in Russian literature in an accelerated program at Azusa Pacific University in Los Angeles.

Hatzfeld, whose hobbies include creating functional ceramics and hiking, chose Russian literature because of the works by Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoevsky.

“Those were the main authors I focused on, and they often talk about the effects of shame on the human being,” she said. “I grew up in a really religious home. So shame and the concepts of good and wrong had been part of my upbringing. I think that’s why I connected a lot to what those authors talked about in the sense of people trying to do what’s best and how society invites that.”

As graduation approached, Hatzfeld wanted to find a career in publication and began searching for jobs in Utah.

She chose Salt Lake City because she liked its vibe.

“I was in college the first time I came to Salt Lake like most people to ski,” she said. “I also had a roommate who lived here after they graduated.”

Hatzfeld had other reasons to move to Utah.

“I grew up in Washington, D.C. and loved having four seasons,” she said. “So when I was done with school, I felt the need to get back to the four-season cycle, even though I loved L.A. Salt Lake presented me with a blend of the four seasons and the culture of the West, which I appreciated in California.”

Living in a smaller city also appealed to Hatzfeld.

“In L.A. you’re one tiny person in a huge city that doesn’t care about you, so it is nice to feel like I could run into people I know at the grocery store,” she said.

After The Park Record was purchased by Park City locals Matthew and Tatian Prince a couple of months ago, it advertised openings for a sports editor and digital editor a couple of months ago.

Hatzfeld applied for both positions, but was more attracted to the digital role. “It seemed like an opportunity to start making a lot of positive changes in the (newspaper’s) digital presence,” she said. “It also became clear that this was a unique time to join The Park Record with the new owners and what the editor’s goals are in terms of the newspaper’s digital presence.”

Joining The Park Record staff is the next step in Hatzfeld’s career.

“I have a goal to become an editor, so being at the Park Record is exciting for me,” she said.

Contact Katie at khatzfeld@parkrecord.com.