[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 62 (Tuesday, April 28, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E595]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 RECOGNIZING DAVE McCONNELL ON HIS 50TH ANNIVERSARY REPORTING FOR WTOP 
                                 RADIO

                                  _____
                                 

                        HON. GERALD E. CONNOLLY

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 28, 2015

  Mr. CONNOLLY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize Dave McConnell, WTOP's 
Capitol Hill correspondent who is celebrating his 50th year of 
reporting for the Washington all-news radio station.
  ``A True Journalism Icon'' was how the Merrell College of Journalism 
at the University of Maryland described Dave in a recent tribute. 
Members of Congress and media colleagues have heaped deserving praise 
on Dave in recognition of his 50-year milestone. Most recently, Dave 
was the recipient of the first ever Career Achievement Award from the 
Radio and Television Correspondents Association, and he has won other 
honors including the Society of Professional Journalists Hall of Fame 
Award.
  Dave has a voice that was made for radio. He has a delivery that is 
authoritative and commanding but at the same time reassuring and 
resonant. His voice is readily recognizable by several generations of 
radio listeners in the Washington region. He has earned the respect of 
listeners and news sources because of his encyclopedic knowledge of 
Congress, his thorough and objective reporting on the complex issues 
that come before this body, and his professional manner and demeanor.
  While many reporters have moved from station to station and city to 
city as they moved up the media ladder, Dave began his career in his 
hometown and has reported in Washington throughout his career, most of 
it from his third floor perch in the Capitol that he refers to as the 
``booth.'' As WTOP Senior News Director Mike McMearty joked in a recent 
tribute to Dave, ``It's part of WTOP lore that Dave McConnell, while 
other kids were skipping school to go catch a baseball game and see the 
Senators, he was sneaking into the Capitol to hear the actual senators 
debate.''
  There are few reporters in Washington who can boast they have covered 
12 presidential elections, five inaugurations, and many other 
milestones spanning a half-century of the nation's history. Dave 
McConnell is one of them, although he would never boast about it; it's 
not his style. He is all business and all about the news.
  At a time when men of Dave's age are spending their Golden Years 
doting over their grandchildren (and Dave has seven), WTOP's Capitol 
Hill correspondent continues to use his vast institutional knowledge to 
give perspective on a daily basis to the comings and goings of 
Congress.
  Dave McConnell's colleagues say Dave has no intention of retiring any 
time soon and that is good news for many Washington-area residents who 
have grown accustomed to getting their news about Congress over the 
radio from ``a true journalism icon.''
  I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating Dave on this 
wonderful milestone and in wishing him continued success.

                          ____________________