Happy birthday, Gary Lee!
Gary is due to receive the “Journalist of Distinction” award from the National Association of Black Journalists this summer, an honor that “recognizes a Black journalist in broadcast markets 1-16 and print/digital circulation under 150,000, who has distinguished themselves with a body of work, a story, series or photographs published in print, digital or aired that was extraordinary in depth, scope or significance to people in the African Diaspora.”
Congratulations!
That includes his work as managing editor of the Oklahoma Eagle, one of the oldest U.S. Black newspapers, where he gave readers the local angle when the queen of rock ‘n’ roll, Tina Turner, passed last year.
To “the home crowd in Tulsa, particularly in the Black community, fans and those who worked with Tina knew her as unpretentious and approachable. Many said she reminded them of that sister or cousin who was always available to chat and could gab about anything.”
And the kicker: “Years later, in 2005, this Tulsan also had a Tina moment in Switzerland. The occasion was the Opera Ball at the vaunted Baur au Lac Hotel on Lake Zurich. Zurich’s glitterati gathered for the event.
“Heads turned backward when Tina, then a Swiss resident, arrived in a beige designer gown. Cocktails gave way to an elegant dinner and eventually to dancing.
“As the evening wore on, dance partners changed from one to the next. And at one point, I found myself dancing with the queen of rock and roll. After two minutes, she rolled on, leaving this Tulsan starstruck.”
Gary has been a restaurateur, staff writer for Time magazine and correspondent for The Washington Post, where he was a Moscow bureau chief and later reported from more than 60 countries for the Washington Post travel section.
At the Eagle, he’s just led a project designed to engage readers and measure and improve reader “trust.” metrics.
At our Journal-isms Roundtables, Gary has discussed the role of the foreign correspondent and current-day follow-ups to the tragic 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.
You can watch Gary at < https://bit.ly/3MYjUaK > starting at 1:09:18, and read about the Roundtables at < https://bit.ly/3P12eNh > (foreign correspondents) and < https://bit.ly/35Mw1DS > (Tulsa).
(Photo courtesy Gary Lee)
