Who Will Win the Award of Valor?

Oct. 21, 2005

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Carolyn Terry
703-288-6501
cterry@namme.org

Washington, DC - Whether they’re embedded in Baghdad or witnessing the aftermath of a tsunami, news professionals go wherever the story takes them. This year Katrina slammed into the levees of New Orleans, bringing the United States its own natural disaster. Many journalists rose to the challenge of covering disasters, insurgencies and revolutions firsthand--often at risk of personal peril--and also ensured that these life-changing events remain in the media spotlight.

NAMME has created the Award of Valor to honor an individual whose actions superseded personal comfort and convenience in order to serve readers, viewers, their fellow staffers and victims in a time of crisis, either at home or abroad. The winner of the Award of Valor will be announced at the 2006 Celebration of Diversity banquet on April 27 at the Westin Hotel in Seattle.

The 16 nominees are: Hannah Allam, Cairo Bureau Chief, Knight Ridder; Anderson Cooper, CNN News Anchor; Yolanda Green, Community Relations Director, KHWB-TV; Tom Joyner, President/CEO, Reach Media; Larry King, CNN Host; Ricky Mathews, Publisher, Biloxi Sun Herald; David Meeks, City Editor, Times Picayune; Bryan Monroe, Asst. VP/News, Knight Ridder; Chris Osborne, Reporter ABC; Byron Pitts, CBS National Correspondent; Carl Quintanilla, NBC Reporter; Brian Thevenot, Reporter, Times Picayune; Anzio Williams, News Director, WDSU-TV.

Please join us to pay tribute to all of the nominees. Tickets for the event are $350 per individual and $3,500 for a table of 10. For information, call 202-891-3622.