The Indiana Publisher

Publisher The Indiana Volume 87, Issue 4 • April 2022 Published monthly 2022 Better Newspaper Contest deadline April 28 Entries are being accepted for the 2022 HSPA Better Newspaper Contest. There are scores of cat- egories and special awards to honor and showcase excellence in Indiana newspaper journalism. Entries are due 5 p.m., Thursday, April 28. For more information and to enter, visit https://bit.ly/3KP1h80. – 30 – The traditional mark of the end of a newspaper story. 30 – The number of legisla- tive sessions I've lobbied on behalf of the Hoosier State Press Association with the last 12 as executive director and general counsel. It's been a good ride. During my stint with HSPA, we've worked on legislation that: • Opened up the juvenile courts to public scrutiny; • Permanently created the posi- tion of Public Access Counselor; • Made it clear that email falls under the Access to Public Records Act (Some legislators wanted to treat it like phone calls not subject to public inspection); • Created a mechanism for the public to obtain copies of police body camera video; and • Expanded the Open Door Law to give the public the right to speak at school board meetings (A concept that can grow to include all public meetings in Indiana). Key Points Steve Key It's been my privilege to work with publishers and their staff members to help them serve Hoosiers as a vital piece of what makes local democracy work. 'It's been a good ride': Reflecting on 30 years of representing HSPA See Key Points, page 11 Ruth Witmer Hoosier State Press Association With less than two weeks to go before retiring from HSPA, Steve Key's desk, normally stacked with deep layers of files and papers, is partially cleaned off. Some boxes are packed. The Legal Hotline is ringing. Key came to HSPA as an intern in 1993 and will retire as executive director at the end of April. His three decades in between have been filled with advocacy for Indiana newspapers and advice and assistance to the state's publishers, editors and journalists. "Think of what has changed in newspapers since Steve came on board," said Larry Hensely, HSPA board president and general man- ager at The Hoosier Times. 'A true gentleman': Steve Key retires as HSPA executive director Steve Key presents editor Michael Johnson with a 2021 Blue Ribbon Award for the Herald Journal in Monticello. Steve Key speaks at an event discussing the public's right to information in the late 1990s. HSPA's Karen Braeckel, David Stamps and Steve Key head out to six sites across Indiana in 2001 to listen to input and concerns of HSPA members. See Key, page 12

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