[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Pages 11857-11858]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO MIKE DONOGHUE

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I would like to call the Senate's attention 
to the continued First Amendment advocacy of a Vermont journalist, Mike 
Donoghue of the Burlington Free Press. The Vermont Press Association 
has presented Mike with the prestigious Matthew Lyon Award, for his 
staunch advocacy of First Amendment rights.
  Mike is a talented and seasoned reporter, and in more than 40 years 
as a staff writer at the Free Press he has covered local, State and 
national news, as well as sporting events--all, with integrity and 
vigor. He has shown a steadfast commitment to truth-telling, to getting 
the facts, and getting them right, for the people of Vermont.

[[Page 11858]]

  While Mike has achieved noteworthy accomplishments and awards during 
his tenure at the Free Press, it is, especially, his work as an 
advocate and teacher of First Amendment protections that have drawn the 
distinction of the Matthew Lyon Award. He served two terms as president 
of the Vermont Press Association, where he worked to expand the use of 
cameras in Vermont courtrooms. As a founder of the Vermont Coalition 
for Open Government, he has provided testimony in front of the Vermont 
Legislature on a regular basis and on a variety of topics related to 
First Amendment rights. Mike not only is a veteran reporter and 
volunteer advocate but a dedicated educator as well. He is an adjunct 
professor of journalism at Saint Michael's College in Colchester--my 
alma mater--and he has trained young journalists throughout Vermont and 
New England as well as through the auspices of the New England Press 
Association, the New England Society of Newspaper Editors, and 
Investigative Reporters and Editors. His commitment to teaching and 
defending the tenets of the First Amendment led him to participate as a 
trainer in Ireland after the country passed its Freedom of Information 
Act in 1997.
  The Vermont Press Association each year offers the Matthew Lyon Award 
to an individual who has demonstrated an exceptional commitment to the 
First Amendment and to ``the public's right to know the truth in 
Vermont.'' It is named for Congressman Matthew Lyon, one of the 
foremost defenders of the Bill of Rights. He served in the U.S. House 
of Representatives on behalf of Vermont, as well as Kentucky, beginning 
in the 5th Congress. Congressman Lyon is known for his time in jail--
and subsequent reelection during his sentence--on charges of sedition 
in 1798 for his sharp criticism of President John Adams.
  Throughout his career, Mike Donoghue has worked tirelessly to promote 
accountability of public officials, and transparency in government 
agencies. As an earlier recipient of this same award, I will always 
feel a special kinship in these efforts with champions like Mike 
Donoghue.
  I ask unanimous consent that this announcement from the Vermont Press 
Association about Mike Donoghue's selection for this award be printed 
into the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

            BFP's Donoghue Wins VT Press 1st Amendment Award

            (By The Vermont Press Association, July 6, 2015)

       Montpelier.--Longtime journalist and educator Mike Donoghue 
     of South Burlington has been selected to receive the Matthew 
     Lyon Award for his lifetime commitment to the First Amendment 
     and the public's right to know the truth in Vermont.
       The Vermont Press Association, which represents the 
     interests of 11 daily and about four dozen non-daily 
     newspapers circulating in Vermont, will honor Donoghue at its 
     annual meeting and awards banquet at noon Thursday, July 16 
     at the Capitol Plaza in Montpelier.
       Donoghue, an award-winning veteran news and sports writer 
     for the Burlington Free Press, is being recognized for 
     efforts in his spare time working as an adjunct professor of 
     journalism at St. Michael's College, as a longtime officer 
     with the Vermont Press Association and his volunteer efforts 
     with various groups including New England First Amendment 
     Coalition (NEFAC), New England Newspaper and Press 
     Association (NENPA) and the Society for Professional 
     Journalists (SPJ).
       VPA President John Flowers said Donoghue has been on the 
     front lines in seeking greater public accountability through 
     a range of efforts, including that government officials and 
     courts ensure records are easily available to the public, and 
     that government meetings and court hearings are open to 
     Vermonters.
       ``Mike's efforts in accountability journalism at the 
     Burlington Free Press are well documented over several 
     decades. But the Lyon award is focusing on his efforts in 
     educating students, the public, government officials, and 
     journalists--both for print and electronic media outlets. 
     Mike is called upon frequently to speak in classrooms, in the 
     community and at professional conferences from Vermont to 
     Ireland.''
       His work has helped improve both the open meeting law and 
     public records law in Vermont, Flowers said. He noted it was 
     while serving as VPA President in the mid-1980s that Donoghue 
     helped lead the media efforts in successfully obtaining 
     approval for cameras in Vermont Courts.
       St. Michael's College recruited Donoghue in 1985 to teach 
     as an adjunct professor in the journalism department, where 
     he still helps. He also served as an officer for the Vermont 
     Press Association for 35 years until he resigned as its 
     executive director earlier this year. Donoghue was 
     instrumental in getting the VPA headquarters anchored at St. 
     Michael's College.
       Donoghue serves on the executive board of NEFAC, a six-
     state effort promoting the First Amendment. He was on the New 
     England Press Association Board of Directors and various 
     committees 1995-2001. The Society of Professional Journalists 
     appointed Donoghue in 1990 to serve as the Vermont chairman 
     for Project Sunshine, a nationwide First Amendment effort--a 
     volunteer hat he still wears.
       The VPA solicits nominations from Vermonters each year for 
     the Lyon award, which honors people who have an unwavering 
     devotion to the five freedoms within the First Amendment and 
     to the principle that the public's right to know the truth is 
     essential in a self-governed democracy, Flowers said.
       Donoghue has been named to five halls of fame. They include 
     induction as one of 35 charter members selected by the New 
     England Press Association for its Community Journalism Hall 
     of Fame in 2000. Three years later he was named one of three 
     charter members selected nationwide by the Society of 
     Professional Journalists and The National Freedom of 
     Information Coalition for their National Hall of Fame for 
     Local Heroes.
       Other honors include the Yankee Quill Award in 2007 for a 
     lifetime commitment to outstanding journalism in New England 
     and beyond; selected the New England Journalist of the Year 
     for print or electronic media in 2013; and voted by Gannett 
     employees nationwide to receive ``Greater Good Award'' from 
     the company in 2013.
       The Lyon Award is named for a former Vermont congressman 
     who was jailed in 1798 under the Alien and Sedition Act for 
     sending a letter to the editor, criticizing President John 
     Adams. While Lyon was serving his federal sentence in a 
     Vergennes jail, Vermonters re-elected him to the U.S. House 
     of Representatives. Lyon is credited with ousting Adams when 
     he cast the deciding vote in favor of Thomas Jefferson when 
     the 1800 presidential race went to Congress for a final 
     determination.
       Previous Matthew Lyon winners include Patrick J. Leahy for 
     his work as a state prosecutor and U.S. senator; Edward J. 
     Cashman for his efforts as Chittenden Superior Court clerk, a 
     state prosecutor and state judge; Robert Hemley, for his many 
     successful fights as a lawyer to keep courtrooms open and 
     court files available to the public; Gregory Sanford, state 
     archivist, for his work in maintaining, restoring and saving 
     government records for public access; H. Allen Gilbert, 
     executive director of ACLU in Vermont for fighting for 
     greater public access to government records and for public 
     disclosure about police misconduct; and Ken Squier and WDEV-
     radio for efforts to inform Vermonters about state and local 
     issues.

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