The New England Newspaper and Press Association will be inducting four new members into its hall of fame in March, including Naomi Schalit and John Christie, the two co-founders of the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, which publishes The Maine Monitor.
More than 100 people have been inducted into the hall of fame in the past 25 years. The honor recognizes outstanding newspaper professionals in the six-state region and celebrates the contributions they made to the industry. The honorees will be recognized on March 28 in Portland during the association’s annual convention.
Schalit and Christie were chosen as part of this year’s class in recognition of their exceptional contributions to Maine journalism, according to an announcement from the association. Schalit and Christie were also inducted into the Maine Press Association Hall of Fame last year.
After decades working in Maine journalism, Schalit and Christie founded the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting in 2009 to focus on producing hard-hitting and nonpartisan investigative journalism.
“Their vision and leadership helped establish an independent news organization that delivered high-impact, free reporting on critical issues like politics, education, and the environment,” the association said in a news release. “John and Naomi’s ongoing dedication to transparent, nonpartisan journalism played a pivotal role in reshaping Maine’s news ecosystem.”
From the beginning, all of the stories have been eligible for republication by Maine’s other media outlets. The newsroom’s first story, in January 2010, was republished by the Bangor Daily News, the Sun Journal, the Ellsworth American and the Mount Desert Islander. The story looked at the role of money, influence and personal relationships in Gov. John Baldacci’s handling of tax reform legislation.
“Their contributions to journalism in Maine are exceptional,” said the center’s executive director Micaela Schweitzer-Bluhm. “John and Naomi launched the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting with a clear vision: deliver fearless, in-depth journalism that serves Mainers with information they need and that holds institutions and decision makers accountable.”
Also being inducted into the hall of fame this year will be Stephen Kurkjian of The Boston Globe and Paul Pronovost of the Cape Cod Times. Kurkjian is a three-time Pulitzer Prize winner who helped expose corruption in Somerville City Hall, political dealings in the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and the clergy abuse scandal in the Catholic Church. Pronovost retired as executive editor and general manager of the Cape Cod Times in 2019.
