Hussman, others earn press group accolades
The Arkansas Press Association honored several people at an awards banquet Friday night in Eureka Springs.
Walter E. Hussman Jr., publisher of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, received the Distinguished Service Award. John Tull, a Little Rock lawyer, won the Freedom of Information Award. Savvy Shields, the 2017 Miss America, received the Headliner of the Year Award. And Merlin Mann, a former instructor at Arkansas Tech University, won the Journalism Educator Award.
Three people received Golden 50 Service Awards for a half century in journalism. They were Lynda Hollenbeck, who has been with
The Saline Courier in Benton for 48 years; Brenda Blagg,
a freelance writer and syndicated columnist based in Fayetteville; and Rusty Fraser, publisher of the Stone County Leader in Mountain View.
Hussman was named Editor & Publisher Magazine’s 2008 Publisher of the Year. WEHCO Media, the company that bears his initials, publishes 10 daily and nine weekly newspapers in three states, plus eight magazines, and also operates a number of cable television systems under its video division, according to the banquet brochure.
Hussman said he began his newspaper career at the age of 10 inserting newspapers in the mailroom of the Camden News. He worked four hours that first day and earned $1. Hussman said he headed straight to The Chatterbox restaurant and blew 35 cents of it on a hamburger.
About the time he was in college at the University of North Carolina, Hussman said he started dreaming of being the publisher of the oldest and best newspaper in Arkansas.
“Not many people get to live their dreams,” Hussman said Friday in a phone interview. “I got to live mine, so I appreciate the honor of re-
ceiving this award.”
Tull said he has represented the Arkansas Press Association for more than 25 years.
Dennis Schick, former executive director of the press association, went to Tull with the idea of having a hotline so journalists with questions about the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act could call him directly and get answers.
“I get calls from all four corners of the state on a somewhat regular basis,” Tull said Friday in a phone interview. “I try to help them as much as I can.”
Tull won the press association’s Distinguished Service Award in 2006.
Mann retired in May after 32 years teaching collegiate journalism, the final six years at Arkansas Tech in Russellville, according to the banquet brochure. Prior to Tech, he taught at Abilene Christian University for 26 years. Mann worked for more than 10 years as a reporter, including jobs at the Idaho Statesman in Boise, Idaho, and the Times Herald-Record in Middletown, N.Y.
During her year as Miss America, Fayetteville native Shields served as National Goodwill Ambassador for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and encouraged Americans to embrace a healthier lifestyle.