>>>
>>> I
>>> I HAVEN'T VENTURED OUT OF THE HOUSE VERY OFTEN SINCE,
HONESTLY, IT IS FRIDAY, MARCH
13.
13.
13. AND,
13. AND, HAVE BEEN HOSTING FROM MY
HOME.
HOME.
HOME. BUT, ONE OF THE FEW CHECKS THAT
I'VE MADE SURE TO GO OUT WAS TO
PURCHASE THIS.
PURCHASE THIS. THE MAY 5 ISSUE OF THE COURIER-
JOURNAL ANNOUNCING THAT THEY
HAD WON THE PULITZER PRIZE.
AND, I HAVE A DIGITAL
SUBSCRIPTION ENCOURAGING PEOPLE
ALWAYS TO SUPPORT LOCAL
JOURNALISM BUT, I NEED ONE OF
THESE IN MY HANDS.
SO IT'S A PLEASURE TO HAVE RICK
GREEN JOINING US THIS MORNING.
WHERE WERE YOU WHEN YOU FIRST
HEARD THE NEWS?
WHAT YOU REMEMBER FROM THAT
DAY?
DAY?
DAY? >>
DAY? >> FIRST OFF, THANK YOU SO MUCH
FOR THE CHANCE TO SPEND TIME
WITH YOU.
WITH YOU.
WITH YOU. IT'S GOOD TO SEE ANYBODY AFTER
ALL THESE WEEKS OF SOCIAL
ISOLATION.
ISOLATION. I WAS ON A CONFERENCE CALL WITH
OTHER EDITORS USA TODAY NETWORK
EDITORS FROM AROUND THE COMPANY
AND SOMEBODY IN THAT GROUP WAS
ON THE PLANO AND KNEW THAT WE
HAD NOT SURE THAT WITH ANYBODY
AND SUGGESTED TO OUR PRESIDENT
THE TOP EDITORS OF THE COMPANY
COULD GET TOGETHER AND WATCH
THOSE IN PERSON.
AND, SITTING HERE WATCHING THE
BEGINNING OF THE ANNOUNCEMENT.
AND I LOST MY INTERNET.
SO, I HAVE MY SCREEN UP BECAUSE
WE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF A
MEETING.
MEETING.
MEETING. AND, I HAD MY CELL PHONE NEXT
TO IT.
TO IT.
TO IT. AND, I LOST THE CONNECTION AS
SHE STARTED TO ANNOUNCE THE
FIRST AWARD.
FIRST AWARD. SO, PICKING UP MY PHONE.
AND YOU KNOW, YOU PLAY WITH IT.
AND I'M WATCHING ALL THE FOLKS
THAT ARE ON THAT SCREEN ALL
PLOTTING AND CHEERING AND
SMILING AND I'M THINKING, OH MY
GOD, SOMEBODY ONE.
AND, IT TOOK ME A COUPLE OF
MINUTES TO FIGURE OUT.
SO, IT WAS A VERY SURREAL
MOMENT.
MOMENT.
MOMENT. AND A VERY SURREAL TIME IN OUR
LIVES.
LIVES.
LIVES. SO, I GOT VERY EMOTIONAL.
I MEAN, IT'S BEEN VERY HARD.
AND YOU AND ALL THEIR FRIENDS
HAVE YOU KNOW THE CHALLENGES WE
FACE.
FACE.
FACE. AND
FACE. AND YOU WORK SO HARD TO TELL
IMPORTANT STORIES AND STILL BE
A PRIMARY NEWS CONTENT SOURCE.
IN VIEWERS AND TO SUDDENLY SEE
YOUR NAME IN ONE OF THE MOST
PRESTIGIOUS PLACES POSSIBLE AND
THEN, AN AWFUL LOT TO MY ENTIRE
STAFF.
STAFF.
STAFF. WE
STAFF. WE ARE VERY GRATEFUL FOR THE
RECOGNITION.
RECOGNITION. >> YOU BEEN ALL OVER THE
COUNTRY AND YOU'VE JOINED THE
COURIER-JOURNAL HERE IN MAY,
2018.
2018.
2018. SO,
2018. SO, YOU JUST CELEBRATED YOUR
SECOND YEAR ANNIVERSARY.
BUT, I JUST WANTED TO READ
THIS.
THIS.
THIS. ONE
THIS. ONE OF THE THINGS WAS TO
INTRODUCE YOURSELF.
INTRODUCE YOURSELF. AND I'M PARAPHRASING A LITTLE
BIT BUT YOU ARE SAYING, PART OF
YOUR ROLE AND YOUR
RESPONSIBILITY IS IT STARTS
WITH AN UNFLINCHING COMMITMENT
TO THE FIRST AMENDMENT TO
INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM AND
THE FINING AND THEN TELLING FOR
A HOST OF NEW AND EXCITING WAYS
THE STORIES OF KENTUCKY PEOPLE,
PLACES, AND PROBLEMS AND
POTENTIAL AND ARE 120 COUNTY
STARTING RIGHT HERE IN THE
STATES MOST POPULATED CITY AND
COUNTY.
COUNTY.
COUNTY. WHEN YOU WROTE THOSE WORDS, DID
YOU IMAGINE THAT WITHIN TWO
YEARS YOUR TEAM WOULD BE
WINNING THIS PRESTIGIOUS AWARD?
>> YOU KNOW, NO MATTER HOW YOU
ANSWER THAT QUESTION, THE
ANSWER COULD COME OFF AS BEING
CONTRIVED.
CONTRIVED. HERE'S WHAT I BELIEVE.
I CAME HERE CONVINCED THAT THEY
WERE NOT DOING AS GREAT OF A
JOURNALISM AS IT NEEDED TO.
BECAUSE WHAT THEY DEMAND OF THE
HUNDRED AND 52-YEAR-OLD
INSTITUTIONS I CAME HERE TWO
YEARS AGO.
YEARS AGO. AND, VERY COGNIZANT OF THE FACT
THAT THIS WAS THOSE NEWSROOMS
THAT ONE THOSE PULITZER PRIZES.
WITH VERY STRONG CONVICTIONS
THAT WE WERE GOING TO BUILD A
GREAT TEAM AND PURSUE GREAT
JOURNALISM NOT BECAUSE OF THE
AWARDS.
AWARDS.
AWARDS. NOT BECAUSE WE'RE TRYING TO
ANOTHERPULITZER BUT BECAUSE
THEY EXPECT SO MUCH OF THE
COURIER-JOURNAL.
COURIER-JOURNAL. AND WE RECRUITED EXTREMELY
WELL.
WELL.
WELL. AND, AND WE TOLD A STORY THAT
IT WAS A VERY NORMAL NOBLE
MANNER.
MANNER.
MANNER. AND, WE THREW EVERYTHING AT IT
THAT WE THOUGHT WE NEEDED TO
TELL THAT STORY TO PICK AND,
IT'S THE END OF A VERY LONG
YEAR.
YEAR.
YEAR. THE
YEAR. THE HOLIDAY SEASON.
AND, WE PASSED ON SOMETHING AND
IT FELT LIKE EVERY TIME WE
KICKED OVER ANOTHER STONE, THE
STORY BECAME EVEN RICHER THAN
WHAT WE ANTICIPATED.
SO, DID I EXPECT 10 YEARS AGO?
WELL, YOU NEVER KNOW.
AND, ARE WE HUMBLED AND HONORED
BY THE RECOGNITION?
YOU BET.
YOU BET.
YOU BET. IT IS AN UNBELIEVABLE FEELING.
AND, WE ARE IN IT BECAUSE WE
WANT TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN
THE LIVES OF OUR READERS.
WE BELIEVE WHOLEHEARTEDLY IN
THOSE WORDS THAT CHANGE THE
WORLD.
WORLD.
WORLD. AND, WE'RE JUST REALLY PROUD TO
BE DOING IT HERE.
>> FOR THOSE WHO DON'T KNOW, OF
COURSE YOU WANTED FOR THE
PULITZER.
PULITZER.
PULITZER. LAST-MINUTE PARDON.
LAST-MINUTE PARDON. AND WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT
YOU REPORTERS HAVE BEEN VERY
CANDID ABOUT HIS THE GOVERNOR
KIND OF, HE GOADED HIM.
YOU KEEP DIGGING, HE WILL WIN
THAT.
THAT.
THAT. HAS
THAT. HAS ANYBODY REACHED OUT TO HIM
TO SEE WHAT HE THINKS ABOUT IT?
>> WELL, WE TRIED.
WE THOUGHT THAT IT IS VERY
IMPORTANT SINCE WE WERE
RESURRECTING SOME OF THOSE
CONVERSATIONS THAT HE HAD WITH
JOE.
JOE.
JOE. DIDN'T HEAR FROM HIM,
OBVIOUSLY.
OBVIOUSLY. YOU KNOW, LISTEN.
THE REALITY IS, THIS WAS A
GOVERNOR THAT MADE VERY
QUESTIONABLE DECISIONS.
QUESTIONABLE DECISIONS. AS A RELATED TO THOSE IN PART.
AND, WE WEREN'T THE ONLY ONES
WHO WERE EXPOSING IT.
AND, OUR STORIES AT THE
WEBSITE.
WEBSITE.
WEBSITE. THERE IS A COURSE OF DEEP ANGER
AND RESENTMENT AND NOT JUST
FROM FOLKS ON THE LEFT ARE
VICTIMS FAMILIES BUT, VERY
PROMINENT REPUBLICANS.
PROMINENT REPUBLICANS. WE HEARD FROM MITCH McCONNELL.
THROUGHOUT THE LEGISLATURE.
FOLKS WHO WERE VERY UPSET ABOUT
THIS.
THIS.
THIS. SO,
THIS. SO, THE WORK WAS REVELATORY.
WE THOUGHT THAT IT WAS
IMPORTANT TO RESURRECT THE
CONVERSATION THAT JOE HAD WITH
THE GOVERNOR THE SECOND WEEK IN
DECEMBER.
DECEMBER.
DECEMBER. HE WAS WITH HIS WIFE HAVING
DINNER.
DINNER.
DINNER. THE FIRST TIME THEY HAD BEEN
AWAY FROM THE CHILD.
AND THE GOVERNOR CALLED HIM AND
HE EXCUSED HIMSELF.
AND, HE WAS VERY DEFIANT.
HE FELT THAT THE CRITICISM THAT
HE WAS RECEIVING FROM AROUND
THE COMMONWEALTH, PARTICULARLY,
THE LEGISLATURE, WAS UNFAIR.
AND BASICALLY, TO YOUR POINT,
CHALLENGED HIM AND SAID, YOU
FIND THREE OR FOUR OF THE MOST
INTERESTING CASES AND YOU DIG.
AND YOU'LL FIND THAT I'M RIGHT.
AND YOU FIND I DON'T KNOW HOW
GOOD OF A REPORTER YOU ARE.
BUT, IF YOU STICK WITH IT,
SOMEBODY COULD WIN A PULITZER.
WELL, WE DIDN'T PUBLISH THAT
QUOTE WHENEVER JOE HAD THE
INTERVIEW INITIALLY WITH THE
GOVERNORS.
GOVERNORS. BUT, ONE OF THE FIRST TEXT THAT
I GOT AFTER THAT WAS FROM JOE.
AND HE SAYS, NOW WILL YOU LET
ME USE THAT QUOTE?
AND, I DON'T KNOW WHERE HE HAS
RIGHT NOW.
RIGHT NOW. WE CERTAINLY DIDN'T PURSUE THE
STORY WITH THE BIGGER ENERGY
THAT WE DID BECAUSE OF THIS
CHALLENGE.
CHALLENGE. BUT, IT PROVIDED A LITTLE BIT
OF AN