H.R. No. 19
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, A team of editorial writers from the Dallas Morning
News has won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing; and
WHEREAS, The award recognizes editorial writing that
exhibits "clearness of style, moral purpose, sound reasoning, and
power to influence public opinion in what the writer conceives to be
the right direction"; in addition, the Morning News was commended
for its "relentless editorials deploring the stark social and
economic disparity between the city's better-off northern half and
distressed southern half"; and
WHEREAS, Beginning in 2007, Dallas Morning News editorial
writers Tod Robberson, Colleen McCain Nelson, and William McKenzie,
along with other members of the paper's editorial board, embarked
on an intensive and ongoing campaign called "Bridging Dallas'
North-South Gap"; the purpose was to call attention to and advocate
for the part of the city south of Interstate 30 and the Trinity
River, which they observed "has been corroding for decades"; and
WHEREAS, The team spent months immersing itself in this
impoverished, neglected area, interviewing community leaders,
business owners, and residents, touring neighborhoods, and
participating in seminars, roundtable discussions, and town hall
meetings; along the way, they used the editorial page to explain why
North Dallas residents need to care about the southern half of their
city, and they also strived to give voice to South Dallas residents;
and
WHEREAS, Since then, Mr. Robberson, Ms. Nelson, and Mr.
McKenzie have highlighted a range of issues plaguing South Dallas,
including blighted property, absentee landowners, joblessness
among males, teenage pregnancy, and high dropout rates; among the
editorials submitted for review to the Pulitzer Prize Board were
"Bleak House," about boarded-up South Dallas homes and their
negligent owners and "Not a One-Man Job" about the lack of adequate
support for Paul Quinn College; and
WHEREAS, An especially noteworthy component of the Bridging
the Gap campaign is the monthly editorial "10 Drops in the Bucket,"
a list of persistent problems that cause stress for southern Dallas
residents; these pieces have been instrumental in spurring the city
to action on the demolition of notoriously crime-ridden motels and
empty, burned-out houses; moreover, editorial writers supported
six pieces of legislation during the 2009 legislative session, and
three of them passed; and
WHEREAS, Tod Robberson, Colleen McCain Nelson, and William
McKenzie, backed by Morning News publisher Jim Moroney, editor Bob
Mong, vice president and editorial page editor Keven Ann Willey,
deputy editorial page editor Sharon Grigsby, and members of the
editorial board, have set an outstanding example of editorial
writing, and their efforts have contributed significantly to the
betterment of South Dallas and the entire city; now, therefore, be
it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas
Legislature hereby congratulate the editorial writers of the Dallas
Morning News on winning the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for editorial
writing and extend to them sincere best wishes for continued
success; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That official copies of this resolution be prepared
for Mr. Robberson, Ms. Nelson, and Mr. McKenzie as an expression of
high regard by the Texas House of Representatives.
Johnson
Branch
Anderson of Dallas
Burkett
Gooden
Laubenberg
Sheets
______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 19 was adopted by the House on
February 15, 2011, by a non-record vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House