FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – MARCH 6, 2010
CONTACT: Sarah Saubert, (612) 626-1723
MINNESOTA JOURNALISM CENTER
WINNERS OF 33rd ANNUAL FRANK PREMACK PUBLIC AFFAIRS
JOURNALISM AWARDS ANNOUNCED
The winners of the 2009 Frank Premack Public Affairs Journalism Awards include the
Rochester Post-Bulletin, the Mille Lacs Messenger, the Farmers Independent and the Star Tribune. Winners
will be honored at the Frank Premack Public Affairs Journalism Awards Program, held Monday,
April 19, 2010 at 5:00 p.m. in the A.I. Johnson Room at McNamara Alumni Center, located on the
East Bank of the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis campus. The 33rd annual awards program
titled “Courageous Journalism in Tough Times” will celebrate the winning works and best practices
of public affairs journalism, and will also feature the presentation of the Graven Award to Lori
Sturdevant of the Star Tribune and the Farr Award to James P. Dolan of Dolan Media Company. The
winning journalists and award winners will have the opportunity to speak about their work.
The Premack award winners to be honored for work produced in 2009 are:
Excellence in coverage of breaking news about public affairs (Larger organization): The Star
Tribune and staff reporters are the winners of the excellence in coverage of breaking news about
public affairs award for their series on Daniel Hauser published May 8-27, 2009. The series was
about a young cancer patient and his mother from Sleepy Eye defying the law by fleeing the State
rather than undergoing traditional cancer treatments. In the coverage, reporters covered all facets of
the Hauser story, helping readers understand the broad public affairs aspects of this dramatic
episode.
Premack judges in this category said: “The story kept interest without resorting to
sensationalism and was an extremely fair-minded treatment of many potentially polarizing issues.
The Star Tribune committed significant resources to the story and produced a compelling report on
a major issue of public interest.”
George S. Hage Award for Excellence in coverage of breaking news about public affairs
(Smaller organization): The Farmers Independent in Bagley Minnesota and editor and reporter Tom
Burford is the winner of the George S. Hage Award for excellence in coverage of breaking news in
Greater Minnesota for his five-part series about Jennings and Clarice Sunderland published
September 23- November 4, 2009. The series brought to light an abuse of power by the local
county attorney when she had a local man, Jennings Sunderland, arrested on charges of false
imprisonment over his method of preventing his Alzheimer’s Disease-afflicted wife from wandering
off and becoming lost. It also exposed how the wife was taken away by order of the county attorney
and placed by the county social services into nursing home care, where the woman was kept
separated from her husband and suffered bruises and an infection.
111 Murphy Hall | 206 Church Street S.E. | Minneapolis, MN 55455
P: 612-626-1723 | F: 612-626-7543 | mnjrnctr@umn.edu | www.mjc.umn.edu
Premack judges in this category said: “The series exposed a significant issue in a small rural
community and was a clear example of the newspaper playing a necessary watchdog role. It
represented courageous reporting on a complicated issue that had wide impact.”
Excellence in investigative or analytical reporting about public affairs (Larger
Organization): The Star Tribune and reporters Glenn Howatt and Pam Louwagie are the winners of
the investigative or analytical reporting award for their series “Deadly Falls” published November
15-17, 2009. In this piece Howatt and Louwagie investigated the high number of falling deaths that
happen in nursing homes every year. The result was a three-part series that directed a bright light at
the understaffing and faulty safety systems inside the state’s nursing home, where 30,800
Minnesotans live. It revealed a state regulatory system that issued far fewer citations against nursing
homes with significant numbers of falls than any of the surrounding states.
Premack judges in this category said: “This series tackled an unlikely subject matter with
which society does not deal well. It featured good, solid investigating and reporting along with
rigorous analysis, and had a strong public affairs impact.”
Excellence in investigative or analytical reporting about public affairs (Smaller
organization): The Rochester Post-Bulletin and Jay Furst are the winners of the investigative or
analytical reporting award for the two-part series “Panhandlers: Are They Legit?” published August
29 and October 8, 2009. The series featured investigative work to determine if the city’s beggars are
scam artists or people truly in need, and it informed readers about how they can and should help.
On October 7 the Post-Bulletin staff focused on the panhandlers issue in their monthly community
forum, and at that event Rochester City Council President Dennis Hanson said he would pursue a
city ordinance to regulate or license beggars, as some other cities have done, with the goal being to
help people, not punish them.
Judges in this category said: “Furst thoroughly pursued the topic and generated a community
discussion of consequence. Even people outside of the community would find the report interesting
and useful. Furst showed good enterprise in his investigative methods to tackle an interesting and
relevant topic that affects many communities.”
Excellence in opinion journalism (Larger organization): The Star Tribune and Doug Tice are the
winners of the award for excellence in opinion journalism for “It’s easy to pounce on that political
football” published on November 1, 2009. The commentary explored the tougher issues involving
the cost of the Minnesota Sex Offender Program in light of the political antics that followed a Star
Tribune report about pricey flatscreen TVs being installed at the state’s new hospital/prison for
sexual predators.
Premack judges in this category said: “The piece touched on constitutional, moral and
political issues, and presented all sides. The commentary did a good job of balancing difficult issues
and pointed out that both political sides have waffled on this matter. The piece was persuasive and
thought-provoking.”
111 Murphy Hall | 206 Church Street S.E. | Minneapolis, MN 55455
P: 612-626-1723 | F: 612-626-7543 | mnjrnctr@umn.edu | www.mjc.umn.edu
Excellence in opinion journalism (Smaller organization): The Mille Lacs Messenger of Isle
Minnesota and Brett Larson are the winners of the award for excellence in opinion journalism for
“Good governments don’t fear sunshine” published on November 25, 2009. In this story Larson
brought to light that the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe tribal government routinely conducts business
outside of the public eye. Its finances are closed to its own members as well as the general public,
and this has created a feeling of disenfranchisement and mistrust among many Band members.
Premack judges in this category said: “This simple and elegant editorial reflects bravery in
tackling an undoubtedly unpopular issue from the tribal leaders’ standpoint. Larson encouraged
leaders to embrace the sunshine concept.”
Graven Award: Lori Sturdevant, the public affairs and political opinion columnist of the
Minneapolis Star Tribune is the recipient of the prestigious 2010 Graven Award. Sturdevant has
worked for more than 33 years as an award-winning reporter, editor and columnist.
“The unanimous selection of Ms. Sturdevant is our recognition of the honoree’s special
qualities of character, integrity, courage and determination in the face of unquestioned challenges
and difficulties,” said Jim Pumarlo, Chair of the Premack Board. “Her columns and her open
willingness to say ‘yes’ to every community group asking her to address their meetings is but a small
part of a career that has consistently held fast to the traditions of great public affairs journalism.”
Sturdevant was the recipient of the very first Premack Public Affairs Journalism Award in
1977 with her colleague Joe Rigert, and was honored again in 2001 in the Opinion Journalism
category.
In addition to her widely known work as a public affairs columnist, Sturdevant has edited or
ghostwritten six books covering the civic, community, political and public life of noted Minnesotans.
Her dedication to education is emphasized by her work as a member of the Board of Trustees of
Coe College in Iowa, of which she is a Summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa alumna.
The Premack Public Affairs Journalism Awards Board gives the Graven award each year to
members of the journalistic community whose contribution to excellence in the journalism
profession has deserved special recognition. It is named after David L. Graven, a close friend of
Frank Premack, who served on the Premack Board until his death in 1991.
Farr Award: The Farr Award winner is James P. Dolan, President and CEO of Dolan
Media Company. Dolan Media Company’s mission is to help their customers use information to
succeed. To achieve this goal they provide necessary business information and professional services
to legal, financial and real estate sectors in the United States.
The Company's Business Information Division publishes business journals, court and
commercial newspapers and other publications, operates web sites and conducts a broad range of
events for targeted audiences in each of the 21 markets that it serves across the United States.
The Board selected Dolan in recognition of his commitment to expanding his public affairs
information and publishing efforts. “Jim Dolan is a shining light in an industry that is facing
difficulties. He deserves recognition for making an important investment in public affairs journalism,
and has proven it can be successful,” said Board Chair Jim Pumarlo.
111 Murphy Hall | 206 Church Street S.E. | Minneapolis, MN 55455
P: 612-626-1723 | F: 612-626-7543 | mnjrnctr@umn.edu | www.mjc.umn.edu
The Premack Public Affairs Journalism Awards Board confers the Farr Award on occasions when a
member of the community has made an exceptional contribution to public affairs journalism. It is
named after George A. Farr, a close friend of Frank Premack, who served as chair of the Premack
Board for the first 29 years of the program.
Visit the Minnesota Journalism Center website to view the winning entries. www.mjc.umn.edu.
***
The Frank Premack Public Affairs Journalism Award competition is one of Minnesota's most
coveted and celebrated journalism honors. Started after the death in 1975 of Frank Premack, a
reporter, city editor and assistant managing editor at the Minneapolis Tribune, the competition has
recognized Minnesota media doing public affairs journalism in their community or region for more
than 30 years. The journalists submitting the winning entries receive a $250 check, while each of the
winning media outlets receives a special citation. The entries are judged by a panel of citizens
representing the Minnesota community and public life in the arts, journalism, law, and politics.
The Premack Public Affairs Journalism Awards Board was established in 1976 to honor the
work and memory of Frank Premack, a reporter, city editor and assistant managing editor of the
Minneapolis Tribune.
The Minnesota Journalism Center is the outreach and professional development arm of the
University of Minnesota's School of Journalism and Mass Communication. The center operates on a
nonprofit basis serving mass communication professionals, students and educators in Minnesota and
the Upper Midwest.
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111 Murphy Hall | 206 Church Street S.E. | Minneapolis, MN 55455
P: 612-626-1723 | F: 612-626-7543 | mnjrnctr@umn.edu | www.mjc.umn.edu