[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 115 (Wednesday, September 22, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1683]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           HONORING STEVE McNAMARA OF MILL VALLEY, CALIFORNIA

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. LYNN C. WOOLSEY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 22, 2004

  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Steve McNamara of 
Mill Valley, California, for his 39 years as editor and publisher of 
the award-winning and innovative weekly newspaper, the Pacific Sun. 
Steve purchased the paper in 1966, and developed it into a newsweekly 
known for its quality writing, environmental advocacy, commitment to 
journalistic integrity, and strong relationships with the communities 
it serves.
  The Pacific Sun, under Steve's leadership, set a national standard 
for how local newspapers can influence the fabric of a community. The 
paper told stories about local people and took positions on important 
social issues, fulfilling its mission ``to cover events of ongoing 
significance with clarity, intelligence, style, and wit.''
  The Sun was an influential player in opposing unfortunate 
environmental projects such as building a nuclear power plant at Bodega 
Bay on the San Andreas Fault and filling in Richardson Bay for Los 
Angeles style marinas. Steve also promoted the creation of Point Reyes 
National Seashore, preserving the beautiful Marin county coast as a 
jewel of the national park system rather than home to thousands of 
commercial and residential sites. He successfully championed the 
building of a new civic center designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, now the 
pride of Mann County, and was prophetic, though unsuccessful, in 
encouraging development of a solar village at Hamilton Air Force Base.
  Steve has always believed that the written word should be celebrated. 
More importantly, he has always stuck to the notion that ideas and 
activities should be reported on what he calls the ``human scale''--
focusing on small, tangible issues and activities to which people can 
relate. During his career at the Sun, he was passionate about reporting 
local events, local politics and social issues, and local people. Steve 
was able to bring these elements together, and by doing so, he helped 
make up the fabric of the community.
  Prior to purchasing the Sun in 1966, Steve was the Sunday editor of 
the San Francisco Examiner and Chronicle. He had also been the 
executive sports editor of The Examiner, a writer covering Grand Prix 
auto racing in Europe for Car and Driver Magazine, and a reporter and 
editor at The Miami Herald and Winston-Salem Journal. Steve became the 
first president of the National Association of Alternative Newsweeklys 
(now AAN), which has nearly 130 member papers and was a founding 
president of the California Association of Alternative Newsweeklies 
(Cal-AAN), president of the California Society of Newspaper Editors and 
a member of the board of the California Newspapers Association. After 
50 years in journalism, 39 of them at the Pacific Sun, Steve made his 
decision to sell the Pacific Sun and move on to other projects at the 
age of 70.
  Steve is proud to have been a resident of Mill Valley for so many 
years. His five children, and especially his wife Kay, all had an 
active role in the paper at some point in their lives. With his 
family's help, Steve made the Pacific Sun a success, its reputation as 
the conscience of Marin County often contrasting with the area's daily 
newspaper.
  Mr. Speaker, Steve McNamara's record social activism, ethical 
reporting, and community leadership embodies the idea of living and 
working on the human scale, and as a result, Steve has become an 
important part of so many lives in the North Bay. I have enjoyed 
working with Steve and wish him luck in his new endeavors.

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