A reporter from the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette whose work has exposed judicial and higher-education corruption will be honored by the American Journalism Historians Association.
Debra Hale-Shelton, who joined the Democrat-Gazette in 2004, will receive the association's 2017 Local Journalist Award at its annual convention, which will be held Oct. 12-14 in Little Rock, according to a news release.
"Every year, AJHA honors a journalist in our convention city who has repeatedly ensured that the public interest is served by governmental, societal and corporate institutions," said Dave Vergobbi, association president and a member of the University of Utah faculty. "We are indeed pleased to so honor Debra Hale-Shelton this year in Little Rock, because her career exemplifies the vital role of journalism in a democracy."
Born in Memphis and raised in Marked Tree, Hale-Shelton's first job was at the now-defunct weekly Marked Tree Tribune. She worked part time at the Jonesboro Sun while attending Arkansas State University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in journalism and a master's in English.
Hale-Shelton worked more than 20 years for The Associated Press, mostly in Chicago and Little Rock but also in Atlanta and Louisville, Ky. She has interviewed former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, and a young Donald Trump.
Hale-Shelton's investigative reporting led to the resignations of two University of Central Arkansas presidents. She also reported extensively on a judicial corruption investigation in Faulkner County.
"Debra Hale-Shelton is, perhaps, the best reporter in Arkansas," said Donna Lampkin Stephens, associate professor of journalism at the University of Central Arkansas. "The epitome of journalism's watchdog role, she is a dogged, determined journalist who has uncovered a number of cases of wrongdoing and been the catalyst for correcting them. "
Metro on 09/07/2017