Dr Keith McDonald OBE was a print media executive and a leader of Queensland’s newspaper industry in the late 20th century. The son of a southern Queensland dairy farmer, McDonald won an Archibald Scholarship in 1944 to study commerce at UQ, graduating in 1949 with First Class Honours, a University Medal and a government gold medal for outstanding merit.
Following graduation, Dr McDonald worked as an investment advisor and stockbroker before entering the newspaper business. He worked as a finance writer and editor for The Courier-Mail, moving up through the ranks to eventually become a director and chief executive of Queensland Newspapers. He served as a director of News Corp from 1987 until 1998 when he retired. As well as his long stewardship as the inaugural Chair of the editorial board of UQ’s Graduate Contact (now Contact Magazine), McDonald was a member of the board of governors of The University of Queensland Foundation, and a member and treasurer of the King’s College Council for more than 40 years.
In 1989 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to the print media industry, and in 1998 he received a Doctor of Philosophy honoris causa from the University. Dr McDonald passed away in 2012, and in 2018 was posthumously inducted into the Australian Media Hall of Fame.