In our weekly "Behind the Headlines" segment, St. Louis on the Air host Don Marsh discussed the top news stories that caught St. Louisans’ attention this week, with the people who produced them and contributed to them.
This week’s show happened in two parts. For the first part, we remembered George Curry and his many contributions to journalism both nationally and in St. Louis as well as his efforts in mentoring aspiring young journalists. Curry died last week at age 69. St. Louis Public Radio’s Linda Lockhart joined the program alongside Chris King, editorial director for the St. Louis American, and Alvin Reid, a freelance journalist who is seen on Nine Network’s “Donnybrook.”
Related: Famed journalist George E. Curry passes at 69 (St. Louis American)
While Curry was at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in the '70s, he, along with Lockhart, Gerald Boyd and several others, created the Greater St. Louis Association of Black Journalists and a workshop for black high school students who aspire to be journalists.
Reid was one of those students who benefited from such a program.
"George, he was driven to make black journalists, and good ones," Reid said. "He would not accept average. He told me you had to work better. You had to work harder. ... Thousands of journalists were made through that program."
King said that his job at the St. Louis American would become harder without Curry's vision and news judgment to guide the way.
"He was the gold standard," King said.
For the second part of the show, we aired an interview with Missouri state public defender director Michael Barrett, who wanted to respond to comments made by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce on Monday’s Legal Roundtable.
St. Louis on the Air brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. St. Louis on the Air host Don Marsh and producers Mary Edwards, Alex Heuer and Kelly Moffitt give you the information you need to make informed decisions and stay in touch with our diverse and vibrant St. Louis region.