Former CEO Guilty of Child Porn

The former publisher of Newsday pleaded guilty Friday in federal court to charges of possessing child pornography and obstruction of justice.

Robert Johnson, 60, was indicted last year on charges he downloaded two online movies involving scenes of child pornography onto his office computer at Bowne & Co.(BNE Quote - Cramer on BNE - Stock Picks), where had been CEO. Federal prosecutors in New York filed the charges against Johnson nearly a year after he suddenly resigned as CEO of the printing industry company.

Johnson, before joining Bowne, served as publisher of Newsday, a Long Island, N.Y., newspaper, from 1986 to 1994. Johnson is a former member of the New York Board of Regents, a state educational commission.

In pleading guilty in Manhattan federal court, Johnson admitted both possessing the child pornography and trying to destroy the material on his office computer in order to thwart the government's investigation.

He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison on the child pornography charge and 20 years in prison for the obstruction charge.