Zimmerman joins Sarasota News Leader staff

Photo by Norman Schimmel

Stan Zimmerman has been named city editor of The Sarasota News Leader.

A long-time Sarasota journalist, Zimmerman has won awards from the Florida Press Association (2009, 2010 and 2011), the National Press Club (1990) and the Society of Professional Journalists (1980).

He also won a medal from the U.S. Naval Institute (1996).

The FPA awards were for investigative reporting, in-depth reporting and editorial writing.

Zimmerman has worked primarily in Florida, writing and broadcasting for WSPB, WXLT, WBRD, WINK, WPEC, The Sarasota Times and the Pelican Press. He was a columnist for Sarasota Magazine and is the author of four nonfiction books.

He is a graduate of Northern Illinois University, and he holds a Master of Arts in journalism from The American University in Washington, D.C.

He spent a decade in the middle of his career in Washington, covering Congress and the world’s navies as editor of the weekly Navy News.

Unlike most reporters these days, Zimmerman is heavily engaged in his community and his profession. He was elected to the governing board of the Periodical Press Gallery of the U.S. Congress and served as chairman of the Maritime and Naval Correspondents Circle in Washington.

He twice was elected chairman of the Sarasota Coalition of City Neighborhood Associations, after reviving his Alta Vista Neighborhood Association from dormancy.

He lives in a 1926 house near Payne Park with his wife of 25 years. Their son, who is a graduate of Sarasota High School, soon will graduate from Carleton College in Minnesota.

A veteran of the United States Army, Zimmerman is a qualified paratrooper and jumpmaster who served in a special operations unit in Germany during the Cold War.

Zimmerman’s books include “Submarine Design for the 21st Century,” “Submarine Technology for the 21st Century,” “Cruising (with) Class” and “A History of Smuggling in Florida.”

He is a frequent speaker at meetings of historical and genealogical societies, and he has taught elements of Florida history at USF/Sarasota-Manatee and for the Adult and Community Education outreach program of the Sarasota County School Board.

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