St. Bonaventure alumnus Charlie Specht, Class of 2010, was honored today with a 2020 Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award for his investigative reporting into the sex abuse scandal in the Diocese of Buffalo.
St. Bonaventure alumnus Charlie Specht, Class of 2010, was honored today with a 2020 Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award for his investigative reporting into the sex abuse scandal in the Diocese of Buffalo.
Specht鈥檚 reporting over the last year on the mishandling of the crisis ultimately led to last week鈥檚 resignation of Buffalo Bishop Richard Malone. Specht is the chief investigative reporter at WKBW-TV, the ABC affiliate in Buffalo.
Columbia鈥檚 announcement lauded Specht鈥檚 reporting: 鈥淭he searing compilation of investigative reports took clergy sex abuse and cover-up by the Catholic Church, and revealed hidden, long-standing problems within the diocese in Buffalo.鈥
On Twitter, Specht lauded those who came forward to give credence to his reporting.
鈥淭hank you to the survivors and also to Siobhan O鈥機onnor and Fr. Ryszard Biernat, two devout Catholics who gave up their careers and so much more to expose truth in the Buffalo Diocese. This is a tribute to you,鈥 he wrote.
The Alfred I duPont-Columbia Award is considered the Pulitzer Prize of broadcast journalism, said St. Bonaventure鈥檚 Aaron Chimbel, dean of the Jandoli School of Communication.
鈥淐harlie鈥檚 work represents the best ideals of the Jandoli School and its founder, Dr. Russell Jandoli,鈥 Chimbel said. 鈥淭his dogged, important reporting and willingness to confront a powerful institution and leader shows
why thoughtful journalism is so important.鈥
Columbia Journalism School announced the 16 winners, who will be awarded their Silver Batons at Low Memorial Library at the university on Tuesday, Jan. 21, in a ceremony hosted by CNN鈥檚 Christiane Amanpour and Michael Barbaro, host of the
New York Times podcast, The Daily.
The Alfred I duPont-Columbia Awards uphold the highest standards in journalism by honoring winners annually, informing the public about those journalists鈥 contributions and supporting journalism education and innovation, thereby cultivating
a collective spirit for the profession.
______________
About the University: The nation鈥檚 first Franciscan university, St. Bonaventure University is a community committed to transforming the lives of our students inside and outside the classroom, inspiring in them a lifelong commitment
to service and citizenship. In 2019, St. Bonaventure was named the #1 regional university value in New York and #2 in the North by U.S. News and World Report.