Ben Fox appointed chief of Caribbean news for The Associated Press

Ben Fox named AP’s chief of Caribbean news

NEW YORK — Ben Fox, who has covered the U.S. and Caribbean for the AP for more than a decade, will become the news cooperative’s chief of Caribbean news, responsible for coverage of 27 countries and territories and such stories as Haiti’s earthquake recovery and attempts to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay.

The appointment was announced Thursday by Senior Managing Editor John Daniszewski. Fox, 42, succeeds Andrew Selsky, who last year became Africa Editor for The Associated Press.

“For years, Ben has demonstrated an unusual ability to get to the bottom of what’s going on in this complex and vibrant region,” said Niko Price, AP’s Latin America editor. “His leadership skills are of special value as we document Haiti’s recovery from an earthquake of historic scope.”

Fox joined the AP in 1999 as a reporter in the San Diego bureau, and in 2001 he won the Bernard Hurwitz Award for Excellence in Reporting, given annually to a California AP staff member. He transferred in 2002 to the international desk in New York, and became correspondent for Orange County, California, two years later.

He became news editor for the Caribbean in 2005. From his San Juan base, Fox has reported extensively on the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay and on Haiti, as well as overseeing coverage of hurricanes, the offshore banking industry and the Natalee Holloway and Anna Nicole Smith cases.

From 1997-99, Fox was the Dow Jones Newswires reporter in Monterrey, Mexico. Previously, he was a reporter for The Oakland Tribune and ANG Newspapers, The (Sacramento) Union and The Napa Valley Register.

Fox grew up in East Setauket, N.Y., and is a graduate of the University of California, Davis.