This honor belongs to many

2006 Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame Inductees In April, six new members were inducted in the University of Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame. Honored at a luncheon were Larry Spitzer, a retired Louisville Courier-Journal photographer; Don Neagle, owner/operator of WRUS-AM in Russellville; the sons and widow of Claude Sullivan, longtime Kentucky Wildcat announcer for WVLK and the Standard Oil Network; David Thompson, executive director of the Kentucky Press Association; Ferrell Wellman, former WAVE-TV Frankfort bureau chief and now EKU faculty member; and Bob White, retired as “Mr. High School Sports” with The Louisville Courier-Journal.

 

Three print journalists enter Hall of Fame Three distinguished print journalists entered the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame on April 11 during a luncheon and ceremony at the Radisson Plaza Hotel in Lexington. Pictured are (above left) David Thompson, executive director of the Kentucky Press Association and Duane Bonifer, president of the University of Kentucky Journalism Alumni Association; Larry Spitzer, (above right) a retired Louisville Courier-Journal photographer, and Bonifer; (below right) Bob White, a retired sports writer with the Louisville Courier-Journal, and Bonifer. Also inducted into the Hall of Fame were Don Neagle of WRUS-AM, Claude Sullivan (posthumous) of WVLK/Standard Oil Network and Ferrell Wellman of WAVE-TV and currently a member of the Eastern Kentucky University faculty staff. This year marks the 26th year of the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame. This year’s six honorees join the 142 previous inductees in the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame.

April 11, I had the privilege of being inducted into the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame. It is an honor any journalist would be proud of and I was deeply touched to learn of my selection.

However, most all of you reading this share in my award. While the name David Thompson might be printed on the plaque, there are a host of people whose names should be on there.

The five with whom I was inducted and most of the previous 142 recipients are recognized because of what they did, and do, as individual journalists -- their writing, reporting, editing, photography and broadcasting. But I know that my award isn’t for anything David Thompson has done, it’s more for what KPA is and KPA has become. In an association arena, one person doesn’t do anything.

By name and by position, I credited a lot of people in my acceptance speech. This isn’t the speech I gave because it was never written down. But it is parts of the speech that came from the heart.

Certainly there’s Dad because I probably wouldn’t be in the industry if he hadn’t been a journalist. And Mom who never said a discouraging word even though at about age 12 I had decided what I wanted to be. (Seeing Dad sitting on the floor, or down on the field covering games for the Lexington Herald convinced me early on what I wanted to be.) I share it with them.

Then there’s the group who labeled themselves the “firing squad,” the executive committee of KPA in August, 1983. Don Towles, Lewis Owens, Betty Berryman (all three of them are members of the Hall of Fame), Floe Bowles and John Munford. They were looking for an executive director and for some reason set aside my resume for one of the people to interview. There were two interviews with them. I’ve held orders to Vietnam in my hands and in October, 1997, suffered a near fatal heart attack. But neither of those, I don’t think, scared me as much as sitting before Don, Lewis, Betty, Floe and John for two interviews. I’m grateful to them for giving me the chance to become KPA executive director.

I really don’t remember much from the two interviews, except for one question. Betty Berryman, in the second interview, asked, “If you’re offered the job, would you commit to five years?” My answer was a quick “yes,” but honestly inside I said, “Lady I just hope you’ll keep me for five years.”

Over the last 22 years, I’ve heard a lot of horror stories about contentious relationships between press association executive directors and their boards and officers. I’ve never been able to relate to those horror stories because there have been no contentious relationships. No, not every issue has been met with unanimous approval, and not every vote has passed. But I know everything the boards have done have been to make KPA the best organization it can be and to help newspapers, large and small.

We have the second largest board in the country with 27 members. But still I don’t have any tales to tell. Many of the board members and officers I consider to be very good, even very close friends. And with all of them over the last 22 years, perhaps 200 to 250 individuals, I share the award.

There wouldn’t be a KPA if not for newspapers. Newspapers that I would proudly put against newspapers in any state, any place, any time.

Overall, I believe Kentucky has top quality newspapers. Our contests are judged under reciprocal agreements with other states. In the last 22 years, there have been 64 different contests judged (remember, most of those years we had the ad contest and two news contests) and never once have I been embarrassed by the quality of Kentucky newspapers. In fact, I’ve often come away very proud of the comments judges have made ­ about photography, about writing, about the overall appearance of our newspapers. And I remember year before last, two judges, both appeared to have several years of experience in the business, telling me after the judging ended, “If I ever have the chance, I want to work for a Kentucky newspaper.” So to all Kentucky newspapers, to the publishers, the editors, the ad directors and all the staff members, I share the award.,

Ten people who were at the luncheon April 11 were glad I was but probably wish they weren’t. I think they actually look forward to the times I’m out of the office. I speak of course of the staff of KPA and much like I feel about my newspapers, I feel that way about the staff. I’ll put them up against the staff of any press association, any place, any time. The strength of this staff is its experience. There are just 11 of us but we share 138 years of experience working for KPA. And five of us have an additional 78 years in the news media, mostly with newspapers. Together that’s 216 years of working with and working for newspapers. And with my staff, I share the award.

And then there are three people who are why I do, what I do. Even over the last 22 years, when asked “Just what is it that David does,” they’ve readily replied, “He opens mail and talks on the phone.”

Of course, I speak of Marilyn, Kalli and Symmi. Kalli and Symmi were both threatened at a young age, by their mother, if they ever went into the newspaper business. Symmi heeded those words and became an RN. Kalli did, too, in a way but turned the tables on me and went into TV and is now in radio sales with Clear Channel in Lexington. And she married Brian who is in TV. Of course, she’s also the one who, when I told them of the award, said she didn’t know there was a “Letter Openers Hall of Fame.”

To Marilyn I really owe the largest part of the award. She’s always known and done what’s best for me. Thirty-six years ago, soon as we were married, she said we’d survive on the pittance of a teacher’s salary and that I would go back to the University of Kentucky and get my journalism degree. The decision had been made and, as usual, she had made it. But the biggest sacrifice came in early 1979 and had it not been for that, I wouldn’t be here today. My dream job was to be publisher and editor of the Georgetown News and Georgetown Times. And when that job came open, she encouraged me to go for it. But the sacrifice came in that it resulted in a 33 percent pay cut. So to her I really do give the largest credit for the induction.

There are many, many others ­ friends, family, confidants and associate members ­ who have played a role in my career and played a role in making KPA what it is today. To each of them, and to all of you reading this, I share the honor of being in the Journalism Hall of Fame.

The plaque might read David Thompson but it belongs to a lot of people.

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