Ellen Hale, who led corporate communications for the Associated Press, has retired from the wire service.

Ellen Hale & Jessica BruceEllen Hale & Jessica Bruce

The AP has promoted human resources chief Jessica Bruce to add oversight of corporate communications as a senior VP.

In a statement, Bruce said corporate communications and HR have been closely aligned for years at the AP, noting its internal communications unit manages messaging for the AP's thousands of staffers in 263 locations across 106 countries.

Hale spent nearly 12 years with the AP, leading a 22-staffer unit for media relations, creative, corporate archives, corporate events and special projects, as well as internal comms. She was previously a correspondent for USA Today in London covering Europe and the Middle East, and served as deputy managing editor for features at the Journal News in White Plains, N.Y. She was also national medical reporter for Gannett in Washington.

Former media columnist Paul Colford (Daily News, Newsday) is VP and director of media relations for the AP.