(Reuters) - USA Today tapped MarketWatch's top journalist David Callaway as its editor in chief, the national newspaper said on Tuesday.

At the end of the month, Callaway, 48, will rejoin Larry Kramer, the president and publisher of USA Today and founder of MarketWatch.

"Callaway's expertise in both new and traditional media will be a tremendous asset as we transform our iconic brand into one that delivers unique content in new and creative ways," Kramer said in a statement.

Callaway replaces John Hillkirk, who stepped down as editor of the newspaper at the end of November to become senior editor for investigative journalism and national enterprise reporting. Executive Editor Susan Weiss served as interim editor.

Callaway has been editor in chief of MarketWatch since 2003 and has been with the financial news site, now owned by News Corp's Dow Jones, since 1999. Prior to that he was a reporter with Bloomberg and a columnist with the Boston Herald.

USA Today is owned by Gannett Co.

(Reporting by Jennifer Saba; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)