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In this May 7, 1973 file photo, reporters Bob Woodward, right, and Carl Bernstein, whose reporting of the Watergate case won them a Pulitzer Prize, sit in the newsroom of the Washington Post in Washington. (AP Photo, File)

Three local journalists got a standing ovation on Saturday night at Poynter’s Bowtie Ball. They weren’t the guests of honor or the reason people paid for tickets and got dressed up for a party in downtown Tampa.
But still, we watched a stirring video about the work ([link removed]) of the Tampa Bay Times’ investigative team, which won a Pulitzer ([link removed]) for exposing a company pushing shockingly high and toxic levels of lead ([link removed]) into its employees and surrounding community. So when Corey Johnson (now at ProPublica), Rebecca Woolington and Eli Murray approached the stage, the room of 500 or so rose to their feet.
I’ve been to each of Poynter’s Bowtie Balls, the annual fundraising event that honors a journalist with a lifetime achievement award. This past weekend, when Poynter medals were awarded to Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein ([link removed]) , was the first time I thought local news really got the spotlight.
It happened in a few ways.
First, organizers recognized the Florida journalists who covered Hurricane Ian. Some of those journalists were in the room Saturday night, reminding all of us that recovery is still at its earliest stages after the storm that ravaged several communities and that it’s the local journalists who stay with the story.
Then, Corey, Rebecca and Eli’s work earned a standing ovation.
And finally, when Carl Bernstein sat on stage with Poynter’s president, Neil Brown, Bernstein said something about his and colleague Bob Woodward’s coverage of the break-in at the Watergate Hotel 50 years ago:
“It’s really significant that we were local reporters.”
When he said that, I grabbed my phone and typed it out.
Like a lot of people, I suspect, I’ve come to think of their legendary coverage of Watergate and Nixon for The Washington Post ([link removed]) as a national story. This Washington Post video ([link removed]) is a great tick-tock of how it all happened. But Bernstein was right. It was covered by two local reporters who stayed with it.
We all benefit when that happens.

Sustainability, fellowships and local news that works
I’m sharing three things this week for anyone who works in or cares about local news.
* First, check out these takeaways ([link removed]) from the recent Independent News Sustainability Summit from LION Publishers, the Texas Tribune’s RevLab, and News Revenue Hub. That includes: “The independent news movement is growing, with more representation of those who have been historically underrepresented.” Here’s more from LION: "If anyone needed a reminder about how much growth we’ve seen in independent local news, the LION Local Journalism Awards ([link removed]) delivered in spades. As Joshua Benton wrote for Nieman Lab ([link removed]) , the list of winners wasn’t dominated by a small group of unicorn organizations that felt like exceptions to the rule. Instead, they came from all corners of North America, from small towns and big cities, from
for-profit and nonprofit newsrooms – and all of them with success stories that feel replicable, even if deeply challenging. The award honorees also reflected the growing racial diversity within independent news, and at events like this one."
* I was one of the judges for the annual Local That Works contest and love each of the finalists ([link removed]) . The winner will be named on Thursday at 2 p.m. You can join the finale here. ([link removed])
* And finally, the Solutions Journalism Network is launching a fellowship for 10 journalists of color “who want to enter media leadership and experience a deeper understanding of management principles, solutions journalism, community of practice and mentorship.” Interested? Apply here ([link removed]) for the 9-month fellowship. The deadline is November 22, 2022. Questions? Reach out to the fellowship manager, Ashley Hopkinson, at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .

That’s it for me! There’s no Local Edition next week, but I’ll be back the week after. As my 15-year-old says, “keep your friends close and your mashed potatoes closer.”

Kristen
Kristen Hare
Faculty
The Poynter Institute
@kristenhare ([link removed])

A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR
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