Newsday reporter wins Legislative Correspondents Alumni Association's top award

Newsday Albany political reporter Michael Gormley is the 2020 recipient of the Legislative Correspondents Alumni Association's Walter T. Brown award. Credit: AP / Mike Groll
Newsday Albany political reporter Michael Gormley has won the Legislative Correspondents Alumni Association's top award for state government and political reporting.
Gormley, who joined Newsday in December 2013, is the 2020 recipient of the association's Walter T. Brown award.
The association cited Gormley’s coverage of COVID-19 and its impact on New York, including disabled residents, those struggling with job loss, schools and businesses seeking a return to normalcy, as well as an article comparing the lessons learned from the current crisis to the 1918 flu pandemic.
“Mike is a veteran reporter who long ago earned his stripes when it comes to covering New York State government and politics,” LCAA president Marc Humbert said.
“Mike’s deep expertise, experience and his relentless pursuit of stories that resonate with our readers make him an invaluable member of our staff,” said Deborah Henley, editor of Newsday. “This honor from his peers is well-deserved.”
Carol Richards, a former Albany correspondent for the Gannett News Service who later served as deputy editor of Newsday’s editorial page, described Gormley's work as "good solid plain old-fashioned real reporting, without a hint of the hysteria that sometimes infests stories about the COVID-19 pandemic."
The award, which has been presented annually since 1947, carries a $500 prize.
Gormley, the author of two books on baseball who previously worked at the Albany Times Union and The Associated Press, also will have his name inscribed on a plaque on permanent display in the Legislative Correspondents Room on the third floor of the State Capitol.
The LCAA award is typically presented in conjunction with the annual Legislative Correspondents Association Show. This year's show, however, which would have been the group’s 120th, was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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