Knight-Riddder-McClatchy Walcott wins I.F. Stone Medal

July 24, 2008
McClatchy Blog
Our own John Walcott wins first I.F. Stone Medal

We here at N&S, and throughout the entire McClatchy Washington bureau, are bursting with pride that our bureau chief, John Walcott, has won the first I.F. Stone Medal for Journalistic Independence.

The award, conferred by the Harvard-based Nieman Foundation, is a much-overdue recognition of John's role in directing the bureau's award-winning pre-Iraq War coverage -- we being the only mainstream news organization that consistently reported doubts about President Bush's case for invading Iraq, and the lack of planning for what would happen afterward.

In announcing the award, Nieman Curator Bob Giles said: "This is belated recognition of the powerful work done by Walcott in directing his colleagues in developing stories that were unappreciated and almost totally unnoticed at the time. Because so many journalists fell short in their pre-Iraq war coverage, there's a real need to recognize this dogged editor who went about his business in a resolute way to challenge many of the justifications for the war that proved to be false."

We couldn't agree more. John, congratulations!

Here is the full Nieman Foundation announcement. And below is the Associated Press' story this afternoon:

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) -- McClatchy's Washington bureau chief has won the Nieman Foundation's first I.F. Stone Medal for Journalistic Independence for pre-Iraq war coverage.

The foundation said John Walcott's reporting team stood out for its skeptical coverage of the Bush administration's rationale for the Iraq invasion. Nieman Curator Bob Giles called Walcott a "dogged" editor who challenged justifications for the war that later proved false.

Walcott was working as Knight Ridder's Washington bureau chief during the run-up to the war. Knight Ridder has since been bought by McClatchy.

The medal is given by the Harvard-based foundation to a journalist whose work it says shows independence and integrity. It will be presented at the Newseum in Washington D.C. in October.