It's perfectly ordinary and nearly expected for a family man to carry on the family business. But in the family of Robert W. Decherd '73, the ordinary is neither ordinary nor expected.

Decherd's great-grandfather, George B. Dealey, began his journalism career toiling away in the mailroom of the Galveston Daily News in 1885. His hard work won him steady promotions and the attention of the paper's owner, Alfred H. Belo. When Belo wanted to start a telegraph edition in North Texas, he sent his trusted lieutenant G.B. Dealey to scout the area.

Dealey found just the spot, a prairie town of 15,000 called Dallas, and helped Belo establish the Dallas Morning News in 1888. In 1926, Dealey bought the Dallas paper from the Belo family and kept the corporate name out of respect and admiration for the family.

"Our family history is our strength," says Decherd, 47, whose son William just finished his first year at Harvard.

Three generations later, Decherd now presides over a growing empire of 21 television stations, six daily newspapers and three cable news channels. Its television stations reach 14 percent of the nation's viewers and broadcast in seven of the 30 largest markets.

As chair, president and CEO of A.H. Belo Corporation, Decherd has led the company's emergence from the forest of medium-sized, family-owned newspapers into a national media company that reaches from a television station in Seattle-Tacoma to the Providence Journal-Bulletin newspaper.

Decherd did it by selectively adding television stations in high growth areas and by holding steadfast to civic values in journalism.

"Robert made some very, very big moves in television that weren't popular," says Gordon Medenica '73, vice president of The New York Times Co. Magazine Group.

"People criticized him for paying too much for TV and setting a new market value. But since then, the market has exploded and Robert's been shown to be quite prescient," adds Medenica, a close friend.

Even as Decherd was busy adding more pieces to his empire, he made sure Belo remained heavily focused on the local area.

Forbes magazine attributed Decherd's success to this. In a profile of the rising media mogul earlier this year, they found that Belo's revenues rise when local viewer loyalty rises. This is because networks take a 75 percent cut on advertisement revenues for national programming while ad money from local news goes directly to Belo.

But money isn't everything. As a vocal proponent of family values, Decherd has taken a moral stand. He refuses to air the controversial, ribald--and popular--Jerry Springer Show on any of Belo's stations because he disagrees with the nature of the show.

Taking the higher moral ground is unusual in the media business, says Jeremy L. Halbreich '74, president and general manager of The Dallas Morning News. But that path is the expected one at Belo.

"You do not sacrifice principles or programming for increased ratings or circulation," Halbreich says.

A quality product and a dedication to community service are the hallmarks of the Belo Corporation, he says.