Jim Kelly, editor of Pacific Business News for the past five years, is moving to The Honolulu Advertiser next month to oversee its editorial pages.

Kelly, 49, had previously worked at the Advertiser for seven years in several senior newsroom management positions, including managing editor.

At PBN, Kelly often writes the newspaper's editorials and signed columns. In 2007, he won the top award for editorial writing from the Hawai'i chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists for an editorial on Hawaii Superferry.

Under his leadership, PBN has been named the state's best nondaily newspaper for the past five years by the Hawaii Publishers Association.

A native of St. Paul, Minn., Kelly is a 1982 graduate of the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, where he received a bachelor's degree in journalism.

He moved to Hawai'i in 1997 after working as a reporter and editor at newspapers in Massachusetts and Minnesota.

At The Advertiser, Kelly succeeds Jeanne Mariani-Belding, who left the newspaper after five years to work in the area of strategic communications.

Kelly described running the Advertiser's editorial pages as "a serious job that can still be a lot of fun."

"Even with the growth of online media, the opinion pages of The Advertiser drive discussions and action in Hawai'i," Kelly said. "While the newspaper can provide leadership and accountability through its editorials, the pages are a community resource, and they should be a safe, brightly lit meeting place where all kinds of people can share ideas."

Kelly is married to Advertiser columnist Lee Cataluna.

Mark Platte, Advertiser senior vice president and editor, said Kelly is well-suited for the position.

"Jim has a proven track record and is perfect for this job because he has a clear and forceful voice that we want on our editorial pages," he said. "If you know Jim, you know he has strong opinions, and he will continue to make our pages a must-read in the community."