During 45 years at The Providence Journal, Carol rose from small-town bureau reporter to statewide education reporter, and eventually to deputy executive editor – second in charge of the news department. She was a leader of the Providence Newspaper Guild during a time of labor strife, before becoming the first woman to join the Journal’s management team in 1979. She was a guiding force behind the newspaper’s intern program, serving as a mentor for many who would go on to careers at The Journal and at other publications around the nation. Since retirement, Carol has remained extremely active in the Rhode Island community. She is chairwoman of the board of directors at Inspiring Minds, which provides tutors and mentors for students in the Providence public schools. She is also a member of the advisory council to the president of the University of Rhode Island; and an active volunteer with Leadership Rhode Island, which named her one of the state’s “inspiring leaders’ in 2018.
Carol Young
Julia Wells
Julia Wells has devoted her entire professional career to covering her Island community. After moving to Martha’s Vineyard fresh out of Wells College, she joined the New Bedford Standard Times’ two-person bureau in 1973, then worked for the Cape Cod Times when that newspaper eclipsed the Standard Times as the Vineyard’s preferred mainland paper. In 1984, she joined the Vineyard Gazette, where she served as senior reporter for many years before being named editor in 2004. Over more than four decades, Julia has chronicled the Vineyard’s evolution from a quiet backwater where artists and writers mixed easily with farmers and fishermen to an elite resort and vacation getaway for Presidents Clinton and Obama. A fearless reporter, graceful writer and skillful editor, Julia is also a demanding leader who holds herself as much as her staff to the highest standards. A guardian of the public’s right to know and a mentor to many young journalists, Julia Wells is a shining example of a consummate news professional.
John Dennis Harrigan
John Dennis Harrigan has been an important part of New Hampshire journalism and newspapering, both daily and weekly, for more than a half century and counting. He is the quintessential newsman. He has done it all in various media, often appearing on public television and radio, but most of his world has revolved around newspapers. He is probably best known for working full time for several years at the New Hampshire Sunday News, and he kept writing his column, “Woods, Water & Wildlife,” even long after he left the paper’s employ, continuing the column for a 37-year run, one of the longest-running columns in the state. As publisher of the Coos County Democrat, he founded the weekly direct-mail tabloid, the Northern Beacon. He also purchased and ran a four-unit Goss press producing his newspaper and the newspaper long published by his father, the late Judge Fred Harrigan. His informed, respectful, and often humorous columns have introduced and educated generations of readers to New Hampshire’s outdoor vistas and wildlife.
Recognizing the importance of open government during Sunshine Week March 13-19
Sunshine Week was launched in 2005 by the American Society of News Editors, now the News Leaders Association.
In 2022, Sunshine Week is March 13-19. We invite you to hold our government leaders and agencies accountable by running an editorial on the importance of open government.
NENPA is working with the New England First Amendment Coalition (NEFAC) on this initiative. On March 7 we will distribute an editorial in support of Sunshine Week, written by NEFAC Executive Director Justin Silverman.
Please join us in raising our collective voice for transparency and access to public information, and what it means for your readers and community, by either publishing the editorial during Sunshine Week, March 13-19, or writing your own editorial.
Let us know that you’ll be participating, and we’ll collect all editorials submitted and feature them in our eBulletin at the end of the month.
Yes We Will Participate