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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, A team of editorial writers from the Dallas Morning |
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News has won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing; and |
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WHEREAS, The award recognizes editorial writing that |
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exhibits "clearness of style, moral purpose, sound reasoning, and |
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power to influence public opinion in what the writer conceives to be |
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the right direction"; in addition, the Morning News was commended |
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for its "relentless editorials deploring the stark social and |
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economic disparity between the city's better-off northern half and |
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distressed southern half"; and |
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WHEREAS, Beginning in 2007, Dallas Morning News editorial |
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writers Tod Robberson, Colleen McCain Nelson, and William McKenzie, |
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along with other members of the paper's editorial board, embarked |
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on an intensive and ongoing campaign called "Bridging Dallas' |
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North-South Gap"; the purpose was to call attention to and advocate |
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for the part of the city south of Interstate 30 and the Trinity |
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River, which they observed "has been corroding for decades"; and |
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WHEREAS, The team spent months immersing itself in this |
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impoverished, neglected area, interviewing community leaders, |
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business owners, and residents, touring neighborhoods, and |
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participating in seminars, roundtable discussions, and town hall |
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meetings; along the way, they used the editorial page to explain why |
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North Dallas residents need to care about the southern half of their |
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city, and they also strived to give voice to South Dallas residents; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, Since then, Mr. Robberson, Ms. Nelson, and Mr. |
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McKenzie have highlighted a range of issues plaguing South Dallas, |
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including blighted property, absentee landowners, joblessness |
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among males, teenage pregnancy, and high dropout rates; among the |
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editorials submitted for review to the Pulitzer Prize Board were |
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"Bleak House," about boarded-up South Dallas homes and their |
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negligent owners and "Not a One-Man Job" about the lack of adequate |
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support for Paul Quinn College; and |
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WHEREAS, An especially noteworthy component of the Bridging |
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the Gap campaign is the monthly editorial "10 Drops in the Bucket," |
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a list of persistent problems that cause stress for southern Dallas |
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residents; these pieces have been instrumental in spurring the city |
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to action on the demolition of notoriously crime-ridden motels and |
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empty, burned-out houses; moreover, editorial writers supported |
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six pieces of legislation during the 2009 legislative session, and |
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three of them passed; and |
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WHEREAS, Tod Robberson, Colleen McCain Nelson, and William |
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McKenzie, backed by Morning News publisher Jim Moroney, editor Bob |
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Mong, vice president and editorial page editor Keven Ann Willey, |
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deputy editorial page editor Sharon Grigsby, and members of the |
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editorial board, have set an outstanding example of editorial |
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writing, and their efforts have contributed significantly to the |
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betterment of South Dallas and the entire city; now, therefore, be |
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it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas |
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Legislature hereby congratulate the editorial writers of the Dallas |
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Morning News on winning the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for editorial |
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writing and extend to them sincere best wishes for continued |
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success; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That official copies of this resolution be prepared |
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for Mr. Robberson, Ms. Nelson, and Mr. McKenzie as an expression of |
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high regard by the Texas House of Representatives. |