Steve Taylor, chair of the SPJ DC Pro Chapter’s Hall of Fame/DSA Committee, introduced his friend Michel Martin (right) as she was welcomed into the chapter’s Washington Journalism Hall of Fame June 11 during the chapter’s annual Dateline Awards and Hall of Fame Dinner at the National Press Club. Photo by Randy Showstack
Among the three journalists of distinction that were inducted into the Society of Professional Journalists Washington, D.C., Professional Chapter’s Washington Journalism Hall of Fame June 11, 2024, at the chapter’s annual Dateline Awards and Hall of Fame dinner was Michel Martin, veteran journalist with at least 25 years practicing strong journalism in Washington.
Martin, who earlier in her career — before moving to broadcast media — covered state and local politics for the Washington Post and national politics and policy at The Wall Street Journal, where she was White House correspondent in Washington, D.C., is now a host for National Public Radio programs.
“I think we COMPETE when we SHOULD … but we need to COOPERATE when we can and that means supporting … colleagues [at other news outlets] … Collaboration is the key to survival, leveraging our assets … This is not cheerleading and this is not a call to reject transparency … what it is is a call to … respect ourselves because if we don’t, who will …? — Michel Martin
Martin currently is a host of NPR’s “Morning Edition,” and previously was the weekend host of “All Things Considered” and host of the “Consider This” Saturday podcast. She also has hosted “Michel Martin: Going There,” a live event series in collaboration with member stations. Martin arrived at NPR in 2006 and launched “Tell Me More,” a one-hour daily NPR news and talk show that aired 2007-2014. She joined NPR from ABC News, where she began work in 1992. There, she served as correspondent for “Nightline” from 1996 to 2006. Before joining ABC, Martin was a print media reporter.
Martin called on her old friend and former fellow White House correspondent Steve Taylor, who is the SPJ DC Pro Chapter member most intimately involved in the preparations for the annual Hall of Fame inductions for many years, including this year, to do her introduction for the evening’s celebration of outstanding journalism.
Taylor told this anecdote about how he met Martin:
When you are a White House correspondent — as I was, as Michel Martin was — you go where the president goes.
That’s assuming your news organization is willing to pay the travel expenses.
One day in 1990, the first President George Bush went to the Florida Keys for a half-day conference with the president of France. Mr. Bush also went there for several days of fishing.
On his fishing days the traveling White House Press Office would decree “no media coverage.” Usually on those days I would wait around the hotel in case actual news might happen, like Mr. Bush falling out of the boat.
But on one day, I played hooky. I rented a car to go sightseeing. I hadn’t left the hotel parking lot when an attractive young woman waved me to a stop, jumped in the car and said, “Let’s go.”
Folks, I’m not the kind of guy that stuff like that happens to.
The hitchhiker was Michel Martin, whom I had not met. I knew she was in the press corps, a print type. Wall Street Journal, I think I knew.
Somehow I sensed that I shouldn’t say no to her. So I drove.
We had a pleasant ramble down the Overseas Highway to Marathon. We didn’t talk much but she seemed happy enough. I don’t think we stopped anywhere, not even for for a beer. At some point we turned around and went back to Islamorada.
Nothing happened.
In fact, I never saw her again until tonight.
But a few weeks ago it was my job to telephone these four folks to offer them our Hall of Fame or Distinguished Service Award. All you have to do, I told them, is show up, make a speech about whatever you want and get someone to introduce you.
Once again, Michel jumped in my car. She picked me.
Okay … the introduction is over. It’s her turn to drive.
Ladies and gentlemen: Michel Martin.
Martin then took the wheel. Here are excerpts from her written remarks for delivery that evening:
Thank you to the SPJ for this honor … thanks to Steve for introducing me and nominating me … it is so lovely to see so many old friends here …
Thanks to my colleagues for coming … NPR Senior VP and Editor in Chief Edith Chapin … my executive producer Erika Aguilar … Lee Hill is executive editor for GBH News, Boston Public Radio.
We get up EAAARRLLYYYY!!
I was thinking — what did I really do to deserve this honor tonight other than survive … and then I decided … that’s okay ….
You know the numbers as well or better than I do — the loss of newspapers is accelerating . . .
The loss of local newspapers accelerated in 2023 to an average of 2.5 per week, leaving more than 200 counties in the U.S. as “news deserts” and meaning that more than half of all U.S. counties now have limited access to reliable local news and information, researchers at the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University have found.
And there’s a “haves” and “have nots” situation where the startups like the Baltimore Banner are in urban areas, leaving rural areas even more beholden to interested parties with an ideological agenda.
We’re doing what we can at NPR — trying to organize our member stations into a network — we’re obviously trying to stabilize our own finances without our framework …
But I’m interested how we treat each other as journalists. I’ve always been amazed at both how catty and self-hating journalists can be, especially when the stakes are as high as they are right now.
Surprising how self-hating some us can be about our own field and profession … as if we give everyone else permission to hate us … the same reason I don’t use the ‘N word’ and the ‘b word’ in casual conversation, or as a term of endearment — it isn’t … Similarly, I don’t see a reason to get into Twitter fights with people I worked with five years ago … competition … scoops … it’s important, but right now what is most important is … surviving … at least those of us in the FACTS FIRST side of the business, not the ‘win at all costs, beat the other side with a stick’ side of the business …
“I’m interested how we treat each other as journalists.” — Michel Martin
Michel Martin, center, joins fellow journalists in a lively conversation at the Dateline Awards Dinner June 11 on the dais in the National Press Club Ballroom. Washington Journalism Hall of Fame member Tom Sherwood, left, makes a point, as Martin, fellow new inductee John Kelly, second from right, and Mark Segraves of News4 Washington, the evening’s master of ceremonies, listen. Photo by Randy Showstack
I think we COMPETE when we SHOULD … but we need to COOPERATE when we can and that means supporting my colleagues like Tim Mak of The CounterOffensive … The Baltimore Banner and other nonprofit newsrooms … Collaboration is the key to survival, leveraging our assets …
One thing I’m not gonna do is trash each other and use each other’s outlets. One thing I’m not going to do is get into stupid Twitter fights with people … or use other news outlets to send messages when I could easily pick up the phone …
This is not cheerleading and this is not a call to reject transparency … what it is is a call to respect ourselves because if we don’t who will?
It means elevating our appropriate and rightful place in our democracy … if we don’t, who will?
It means honoring our sacrifices … if we don’t, who will?
More than 520 journalists worldwide are imprisoned, according to a recent assessment from Reporters Without Borders. China currently jails 121 journalists, the most of any nation. It holds roughly a quarter of all the reporters imprisoned worldwide.
As of June 5, 2024, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reported that at least 108 journalists and media workers have been killed in the Israel-Gaza war, making it the deadliest period for journalists since 1992. This includes at least 20 journalists killed in Palestine, two in Colombia, and one each in Pakistan, Sudan, and Myanmar …
One of my favorite people to interview is Roger Bennett of the “Men in Blazers” podcast that talks about soccer — but as you soccer fans know, soccer is not a matter of life or death, it’s more important than that … or Rog … a naturalized citizen … he always ends our conversation saying: COURAGE!! [insert British accent here]
That’s what I want to close with … we know we’re in difficult times … but we also know … or should know … we are the indispensable profession … so I say to you: COURAGE!!