HUNTINGTON, Ind. — OSV News Editor-in-Chief Gretchen R. Crowe has been named publisher at Our Sunday Visitor Inc. (OSV) and will oversee the company’s book, catechetical, news and parish resources, beginning June 22.
She will assume this position while continuing in her current role leading OSV News.
“I am grateful to God for the opportunity to continue to serve Him and proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ through this appointment,” Crowe said in a June 18 statement. “Walking in the footsteps of OSV’s founder, Archbishop John Francis Noll, I hope to continue his legacy of communicating the Good News through both traditional and evolving forms of Catholic media in a way that meets the needs of the current moment.”
OSV CEO Kyle Hamilton announced Crowe as the company’s publisher June 18. Crowe will be responsible for the strategic and operational leadership of OSV’s publishing division, which includes OSV Books, OSV News and OSV curriculum products. She is the first woman to hold the publisher role in the not-for-profit Catholic organization’s 114-year history.
Crowe will retain her role as editor-in-chief of OSV News, which launched in 2022. Under her leadership, OSV News has grown from a startup news service into a trusted source of Catholic journalism serving diocesan, national and international media clients.
As editor-in-chief, Crowe has “built and guided a newsroom committed to faithful, accurate and timely reporting, establishing editorial standards rooted in both professional journalism and the mission of the Church,” said the news release. “Under her leadership, OSV News has developed a reputation for delivering breaking news, in-depth analysis, feature reporting and multimedia content that help Catholics understand not only what is happening in the Church and the world, but why it matters.”
Crowe has “overseen coverage of major global Church events, papal initiatives, social and cultural issues, and local stories that demonstrate the vitality of the Catholic faith,” it continued.
Crowe has meanwhile developed relationships with dioceses, publishers and Catholic communicators that establish OSV News as “a strategic partner in evangelization,” the news release stated, noting that Crowe has “expanded the organization’s content offerings to meet the evolving needs of Catholic media, providing clients with reporting, photography, digital assets and formational content that strengthen engagement with audiences across platforms.”
“Through a focus on journalistic excellence, innovation and service to the Church, she has helped establish OSV News as one of the leading providers of Catholic news and content in the world, ensuring that trustworthy Catholic journalism remains accessible to millions of readers at a time when it is needed most,” it stated.
Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, the chairman of the OSV Board of Directors, praised Crowe for stepping into the publishing role.
“I am delighted and very grateful that Gretchen Crowe has agreed to serve as the new OSV Publisher while continuing to serve as Editor-in-Chief of OSV News,” he said in OSV’s news release. “Gretchen’s deep commitment to the Catholic mission of OSV, her media expertise, and her journalistic leadership have been outstanding, and she is more than equipped to undertake this new leadership role. As Chair of the OSV Board, I look forward to the next chapter of OSV Publishing with Gretchen at the helm.”
Since joining OSV 13 years ago, Crowe has led the production of several periodicals and served as editor of Our Sunday Visitor newspaper, founded in 1912 by Archbishop Noll. She has served as a member of the Catholic Media Association’s board of directors, including a two-year term as its president from 2023-2025. She has received numerous CMA awards for writing and editing.
She also is the author of three books: “Legacy of Mercy: A True Story of Murder and a Mother’s Forgiveness” (OSV, 2022), “Praying the Rosary with St. John Paul II” (OSV, 2019), and “Why the Rosary, Why Now?” (OSV, 2017).
Crowe is an alumna of the inaugural class of “The Church Up Close” program at Pontifical University of the Holy Cross’ School of Church Communications in Rome. She holds a degree in journalism and mass communication from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Crowe and her husband, writer and editor Michael R. Heinlein, live in Indiana and have three children. The couple are promised members of the Association of Pauline Cooperators, under the direction of the Daughters of St. Paul.
