The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO) has created a new position of chief digital officer, and has named Vijay Ravindran; he will start in February of next year. Ravindran is currently the CTO of of Catalist, a startup political tech firm that built a national voter database. This past election cycle, Catalist worked with Obama for America presidential campaign, among others. Prior to that, Ravindran was a director at Amazon.com for the ordering services group. More details in release.

Not clear: if his responsibilities are on the tech side, similar to what a CIO does, or if this is a business position. Also, will he overlook all digital businesses at the entire company including WaPo Online and the new-ish Slate Group? More as we find out from the company.

Update 1: The company clarifies: This is a tech position, so perhaps more in the mold of a CIO(see below)...

Update 2: Turns out the company’s being a bit coy about his exact mandate, and possibly for competitive reasons, based on the job description that a source sent me: “[The person] will be responsible for building and leading a small Research and Development team that is working on new Internet products for the Company. This person’s aim will be to discover and develop tools (and guide investment in companies doing the same) that will enhance the Company’s ability to create and distribute information across multiple platforms. S/he will manage a fund to invest in companies that will advance the digital business of the Company.” So a more product and strategic role than daily business.