Claude Sitton
Encyclopedia
Claude Fox Sitton is a retired American newspaper reporter and winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
. He covered the civil rights movement
for The New York Times
during the 1950s and 1960s, eventually becoming the paper's national editor. He served as editorial director of Raleigh News and Observer and Raleigh Times
in 1968, and as editor of News and Observer and vice-president of News and Observer publishing company from 1970 until retirement in 1990.
Sitton graduated from Emory University
in 1949, where he was editor in chief of the student newspaper The Emory Wheel
. He returned to Emory to teach from 1991 to 1994, and was a member of Board of Counselors of Emory's Oxford College (1993-2001).
In the Pulitzer Prize-winning history of civil rights journalism The Race Beat
, authors Gene Roberts
and Hank Klibanoff
describe Sitton as the standard bearer for civil rights journalism in the 1950s. "Sitton's byline would be atop the stories that landed on the desks of three presidents," they write (page 191). "His phone number would be carried protectively in the wallets of the civil rights workers who saw him, and the power of his byline, as their best hope for survival."
In addition to the Pulitzer for commentary, which he won in 1983, Sitton has received the George Polk Career Award (1991) and John Chancellor Award for excellence in journalism (2000). He lives in Oxford, Georgia.
Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
The Pulitzer Prize for Commentary has been awarded since 1970. The Pulitzer Committee issues an official citation explaining the reasons for the award.-List of winners and their official citations:...
. He covered the civil rights movement
Civil rights movement
The civil rights movement was a worldwide political movement for equality before the law occurring between approximately 1950 and 1980. In many situations it took the form of campaigns of civil resistance aimed at achieving change by nonviolent forms of resistance. In some situations it was...
for The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
during the 1950s and 1960s, eventually becoming the paper's national editor. He served as editorial director of Raleigh News and Observer and Raleigh Times
Raleigh Times
The Raleigh Times was the afternoon newspaper in Raleigh, North Carolina. The history of the paper dates back to 1879 the Evening Visitor, first published in 1879. The Visitor later bought out other rival afternoon papers, the Daily Press in 1895 and the Evening Times in 1897...
in 1968, and as editor of News and Observer and vice-president of News and Observer publishing company from 1970 until retirement in 1990.
Sitton graduated from Emory University
Emory University
Emory University is a private research university in metropolitan Atlanta, located in the Druid Hills section of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The university was founded as Emory College in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia by a small group of Methodists and was named in honor of...
in 1949, where he was editor in chief of the student newspaper The Emory Wheel
The Emory Wheel
The Emory Wheel is the student-run newspaper of Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. The Wheel is published twice a week, on Tuesday and Friday, during the regular school year, and is updated regularly at its . The sections of the Wheel include News, Editorials, Sports, Entertainment, Arts &...
. He returned to Emory to teach from 1991 to 1994, and was a member of Board of Counselors of Emory's Oxford College (1993-2001).
In the Pulitzer Prize-winning history of civil rights journalism The Race Beat
The Race Beat
The Race Beat: The Press, the Civil Rights Struggle, and the Awakening of a Nation is a Pulitzer Prize-winning book written in 2006 by journalists Gene Roberts and Hank Klibanoff. The book is about the African-American Civil Rights Movement in the United States, specifically about the role of...
, authors Gene Roberts
Gene Roberts
Gene Roberts may refer to:* Gene Roberts , American editor and professor of journalism* Gene Roberts , former NFL running back...
and Hank Klibanoff
Hank Klibanoff
Hank Klibanoff was the Managing Editor for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution until June 24, 2008 when he stepped down. He received the Pulitzer prize for history in 2007 for the book The Race Beat: The Press, the Civil Rights Struggle, and the Awakening of a Nation, co-written with Gene Roberts.He...
describe Sitton as the standard bearer for civil rights journalism in the 1950s. "Sitton's byline would be atop the stories that landed on the desks of three presidents," they write (page 191). "His phone number would be carried protectively in the wallets of the civil rights workers who saw him, and the power of his byline, as their best hope for survival."
In addition to the Pulitzer for commentary, which he won in 1983, Sitton has received the George Polk Career Award (1991) and John Chancellor Award for excellence in journalism (2000). He lives in Oxford, Georgia.