VETERAN
JOURNALIST
Multiple award-winning writer and editor
“Ethics, the pursuit of facts and the accuracy thereof are a journalist’s stock in trade.”
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Firefighting series submitted for 2018 consideration
Chapters 10, 17 & 35
PHOTO BY MICHAEL JOHNSON
The Herald Journal won 12 awards Saturday in the Hoosier State Press Association 2019 Better Newspaper Contest. The HJ picked up five first-place awards and five third-place laurels, as well as finishing runners-up for the General Excellence and Blue Ribbon awards — the latter being the HSPA’s highest honor.
HJ earns 12 awards in 2019 HSPA contest
STAFF REPORT
GREENWOOD — The Herald Journal collected 12 journalism awards — including five first-place nods — Saturday in the Hoosier State Press Association’s 2019 Better Newspaper Contest.
The awards were doled out at a luncheon at The Nest in Greenwood, south of Indianapolis.
“The Hoosier State Press Association Foundation Better Newspaper Contest recognizes the excellent journalism practiced in Indiana,” HSPA Executive Director Steve Key said. “At a time when journalism’s importance in our democracy is being challenged, the awards remind readers of the excellent role newspapers play in serving as the voice of a community.”
The HJ took first place for
Best Multimedia Story, Best General Commentary, Headline Writing, Best Website and Community Service; and third place in Best In-Depth Story, Best Multiple Picture Group, Best General Commentary, Best Portrait and Best Special Section.
The Herald Journal, which competes in Division I non-dailies less than 2,500 circulation, was second in General Excellence, which totals points earned from first-, second- and third-places finishes.
The HJ was also the runner-up for the Blue Ribbon Award for non-daily newspapers, given as the HSPA’s highest honor based on an overall evaluation of the editorial quality of the newspaper, regardless of circulation size.
Investigation results in First Amendment win, firing of corrupt fire chief
BY MICHAEL JOHNSON
Stories like these don’t come around often. I jumped at the chance to take it on.
It had all the elements of a gripping story. Fire chief abuses his firefighters. Firefighters retaliate and report him. Fire chief launches a campaign of terror.
Accusations of sexual harassment, theft, improper behavior, mistreatment, verbal and physical abuse … and a board that was operating illegally for more than two years. When does one start?
At the beginning, of course.
It all started in late January 2018 when a group of local firefighters came to me complaining how the White Mountain Lake (Ariz.) Fire Board had refused to discipline its fire chief for alleged harassment, threats and intimidation of those firefighters under his command.
He had been placed on non-disciplinary paid leave by the board in late 2017. The board had hired a Scottsdale, Ariz., law firm to conduct an investigation of its fire chief, using taxpayer dollars, for the duration of his paid leave.
Several current and former firefighters alleged McGraw created an environment in which they feared for their jobs and safety through use of harassment and mistreatment via verbal and physical abuse, including an incident in which the fire chief allegedly threw a radio at a firefighter on his crew working the Ruth Complex Fire in northern California.
Most galling of all to the firefighters was the fact that he was still drawing a paycheck the entire time.
During his time off, the fire chief contacted each firefighter under his command and demanded to know who had reported him to the fire board. The conversations were recorded by each firefighter and were given to me to use in my reporting. It should be noted that the fire board had instructed the fire chief to have no contact with anyone from the fire department while he was on his paid leave.
During one conversation, the chief threatened a firefighter that he was going to find out who reported
The accused fire chief and his attorney
I am a newspaper veteran of 32 years experienced in managing multiple tasks, supervising staff and workflow, and meeting deadlines. I possess strong communication, editing and proofreading skills, in addition to numerous skills geared toward communication in the digital age via multiple multimedia channels.
Having worked as an editor for more than half of my career, I have extensive experience in project planning and development. I possess sound news judgment, as well as a solid background and knowledge in creating, composing and editing award-winning written material, conducting interviews, gathering information, taking photographs and video, creating podcasts, managing multiple daily publications and numerous monthly special sections, and disseminating news and information to an audience via numerous multimedia channels, including social media.
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