Do you know a publisher, editor, reporter
or photographer who has demonstrated courage, tenacity and integrity
in rural journalism? You are invited to nominate one or more of them
for the Tom and Pat Gish Award, presented by the Institute for Rural
Journalism and Community Issues.
The award is named for the couple who are in their 50th year of publishing
The Mountain Eagle of Whitesburg, Ky. The Gishes have withstood advertiser
boycotts, declining population, personal attacks and even the burning
of their newspaper office to provide the citizens of Letcher County
the kind of journalism often lacking in rural areas, especially those
dominated by extractive industries -- in this case, primarily coal.
Their coverage and commentary go beyond the boundaries of Letcher County
to address issues in state and federal governments and other institutions
that have a local impact, such as a new regional drug-fighting agency,
the 40-year-old Appalachian Regional Commission, and the Tennessee
Valley Authority and its coal-buying policies that encouraged strip
mining in Central Appalachia. These are just some examples of the type
of journalism worthy of the award.
The Gish Award is given to rural journalists who demonstrate the courage,
tenacity and integrity often needed to render public service through
rural journalism. The first award was made to the Gishes themselves
in 2005. The Institute hopes to make it annually, depending on quality
of the nominations.
Nominations for this year's award are due Sept. 1. The Institute plans
to present the award at one of its conferences this fall. Nominations
should be made by way of a letter or e-mail giving details on the courage,
tenacity and integrity demonstrated by the nominee(s). Send your nomination
to: Al Cross, director, Institute for Rural Journalism and Community
Issues, 122 Grehan Journalism Bldg., University of Kentucky, Lexington
KY 40506-0042, or by e-mail to Al.Cross@uky.edu.
The Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues helps non-metropolitan
journalists define the public agenda for their communities, and grasp
the local impact of broader issues. It interprets rural issues for
metro news media, conducts seminars and publishes research, good examples
of rural journalism and The Rural Blog, a daily digest of events, issues,
trends and journalism in rural America, with ideas for stories and
sources. It is based in the School of Journalism and Telecommunications
at the University of Kentucky and has academic partners at Appalachian
State University, East Tennessee State University, Eastern Kentucky
University, Georgia College and State University, Indiana University
of Pennsylvania, Marshall University, Middle Tennessee State University,
Ohio University, Southeast Missouri State University, the University
of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, the University of Tennessee-Knoxville,
Washington and Lee University, West Virginia University and the Knight
Community Journalism Fellows program of the University of Alabama.
For details, see www.RuralJournalism.org .
Award nominations sought