Taking the Lede: Pulitzer Prize-Winning Nebraska Journalists

Three Pulitzer Prize-winning Nebraska journalists will speak on a panel at a special gathering on Tuesday, September 13. Presented by Humanities Nebraska, the free public event, “Taking the Lede: Pulitzer Prize-Winning Nebraska Journalists,” will be held at the Omaha Press Club, 1620 Dodge Street, 22nd floor.

The three panelists include: Bill Frakes, Doug Smith and Matt Waite. Their discussion on the importance of producing Pulitzer Prize-winning journalism will be moderated by Joe Starita, author of ‘I am a Man’: Chief Standing Bear’s Journey for Justice and journalism professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL).

Frakes, who is a visiting professor in the journalism school at UNL, was a member of the Miami Herald staff that won the Pulitzer for coverage of Hurricane Andrew in 1993. He is a visual storyteller and educator who has worked in every state and 138 countries. Frakes also directs music videos, TV ads, and short documentary films.

Smith was part of the five-person team at the Omaha Sun who won a Pulitzer in 1972 for investigative journalism in a series of articles on Boys Town. He is also founder of Ervin & Smith, a local marketing agency.

Waite was principal developer of PolitiFact, a website that fact-checks statements made by politicians. PolitiFact became the first website to win a Pulitzer, which Waite received in 2009. Today, Waite is professor of practice in journalism & mass communications at UNL.

The event is free and open to the public. Doors will open at 5 p.m. with light hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar. The program will begin at 6 p.m.

This event is a special program offered in conjunction with the 21st annual Governor’s Lecture in the Humanities featuring Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Sonia Nazario. Nazario will deliver her lecture, “Enrique’s Journey and America’s Immigration Dilemma,” on Tuesday, September 27 at the Lied Center for Performing Arts in Lincoln. Also free and open to the public, this year’s Governor’s Lecture is presented by Humanities Nebraska with the E.N. Thompson Forum on World Issues and the University of Nebraska, with major funding from the Pulitzer Prize Centennial Campfires Initiative. For more information about the Governor’s Lecture, please visit HumanitiesNebraska.org.