Reflections on the Pulitzer Prize

It was a long bus ride to New York.

Certainly, there was elation among the members of my staff who made the trip to Columbia University to accept the Pulitzer Prize. We were given a special citation for our work following the June 28, 2018 attack on our newsroom in Annapolis.

We were not alone. Rob Hiaasen was there. Gerald Fischman, Wendi Winters, John McNamara and Rebecca Smith were on that northbound bus in May, too.

They were murdered on a summer day while I was out of town. I’ve avoided using that word out of a journalist’s precision with language. There’s been no verdict, so killed or slain would be more accurate. Murder feels right though.

Rob was my partner in running the newsroom. In the spring of 2018, we had quietly discussed what we hoped to achieve over the remaining years of our careers in a quickly evolving field.

Journalism is challenged, and community journalism seems to be the part of the profession most in jeopardy. We weren’t happy about the prospects. We’ve both been through newsroom buyouts and layoffs. Rob came to The Capital after one in Baltimore.

So, we agreed our goals would include working with as many young journalists as possible, helping them win the experience needed to thrive in an increasingly hostile career environment. We would do the best job we could with diminishing resources and the limited years left.

And, we said privately, we wanted to win a Pulitzer. It’s got to be a common goal for any journalist. So, saying that in a private conversation was more of an expression of a desire to be excellent than some sort of plan.

In many moments that have come since June 28, I’ve wondered if we called down the lightning on ourselves that day.

My staff is a mix of people, some at the beginning of their career, others at some midway point and a few of us absolutely on the back end. All of us were thinking about Rob, Wendi, Gerald and John and Rebecca that day as we drove to New York.

We were awarded the prize, and the unprecedented $100,000 award that came with it, because of the dedication and the work that started on the afternoon of June 28, and continued June 29 and the many days after that.

Our colleagues were there in our minds and our hearts as we walked up to that stage and accepted the award. They were there in the faces of three important guests on our trip, John’s wife, Andrea; Wendi’s daughter, Winters; and Gerald’s wife, Erica.

It was raining when we arrived in New York. There was work to do on the way back to Annapolis.

We dedicate the award and the work that comes afterward to those who are gone.

Your life is changed by the pursuit of journalism. My life has been changed by the people on that bus.

All of them.


Rick Hutzell
Annapolis
August  2019