“There were hundred-dollar bottles of champagne mixed in with buckets of Kentucky Fried chicken, plastic utensils and stone crabs from Joe’s, just the kind of menu a bunch of journalists would dream up on an impromptu basis!” recalls Blais, now a noted author and professor who visited the University of Miami in February for the School’s Ninth Annual Communication Week.

“In the aftermath, I received letters and telegrams from all over the country, old friends, old teachers, old bosses. I have saved all of them to this day.”

Blais joined other Pulitzer Prize winners in discussing the power of words and how they earned the highly respected award.

Blais received her Pulitzer for reporting about a dishonorably discharged World War I veteran. After working for The Miami Herald, she went on to write for other top newspapers, including the Boston Globe, Washington Post and The New York Times. She now teaches journalism at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

Also on the panel was Jim Morin, The Miami Herald’s editorial cartoonist, feature writer Mirta Ojito, investigative reporter Mike Sallah and editorial writer Joe Oglesby. Miami Herald Executive Editor, Anders Gyllenhaal, moderated the panel.

“This was a remarkable opportunity for students to learn from some of the best journalists in the United States,” said journalism professor, Tsitsi Wakhisi. “Any news consumer would be happy to sit among these fine craftsmen to learn more about the challenging work they did to earn our industry’s highest recognition.”

Communication Week was filled with exhibitions, screenings, forums, panels, special events, and other activities led by top professionals and scholars in the communication arts.

The Pulitzer is considered America’s highest national honor in print journalism, literary achievement and musical composition. For more information and a complete Communication Week schedule, visit http://com.miami.edu/comweek.

Media Contacts:
Erica Roth or
Melissa Rubi Falcón
305.284.6748
mrubi@miami.edu