CBA Record July-August 2018

THE 29TH ANNUAL HERMAN KOGAN MEDIA AWARDS LUNCHEON Scoops and Scopes

By Carolyn Amadon Editorial Board Member

I t’s a rare awards luncheon that features a celebration of top-shelf legal report- ing, a little-known connection between WGN and the Scopes “Monkey”Trial, and a generous slice of Chicago history–with Clarence Darrow as well. Yet all were in the mix at this year’s Herman Kogan Media Awards ceremony. The Award Chicago Bar Association President Judge Thomas R. Mulroy opened the event with a nod to Herman Kogan, an extraordinary journalist, literary critic, radio host and television executive who kept company with other Chicago greats, such as Studs Terkel, Mike Royko and Roger Ebert. Kogan was a great friend of the CBA; his book, The First Century, describes the CBA’s origins in the greater context of Chicago history. Kogan’s namesake award honors journalistic excellence in legal and public affairs reporting. Mark Kogan–son of Herman Kogan–joined the event as a family representative. Through this award, the CBA and the Kogan family support the important work of reporters and editors covering legal topics and encourage future journalists through student scholarships. The Kogan Awards Committee, chaired by Dennis Culloton, reviews news media coverage of legal issues; the legal system; and the work of lawyers, judges, govern- mental agencies and civic groups con- cerned with the administration of justice. Winners, whose work is scored on criteria including originality, impact thoroughness and courage, designate the journalism school, college or university to receive a named scholarship donation of $1,000. This year’s winners were selected from a deeply qualified field of entrants covering a broad range of Chicago-based stories with a legal connection.

Clarence Darrow (Part I) On a personal note, Judge Mulroy men- tioned his own connection to Chicago history: his uncle participated in a study group while attending the University of Chicago that included Nathan Leopold, one of the Leopold & Loeb “Trial of the Century” criminals defended by Clarence Darrow in 1925. The study group used a typewriter (a rarity at the time) that later figured into the ransom notes for the victim, Bobby Franks. The Keynote In an ideal pairing, legal reporting sur- faces stories of inequities that need to be righted–and lawyers work to right them. Or, as featured speaker Roe Conn stated, “the media has a responsibility for being right and true… We need the legal com- munity to be partners with us…to be a

beacon [showing that] truth and justice actually do count.” With journalism credentials span- ning more than two decades, Roe Conn contributes regularly to ABC 7’s Windy City Live and hosts the Roe Conn Show on WGN Radio. He was named as one of the 100 Most Influential Talk Show Hosts in America by Talkers Magazine and received the Radio and Records Industry Achievement Award for Best Local Talk Host in America. In 2010, Conn received the FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award, during the tenure of Direct Robert S. Mueller, III. Conn began his remarks by thanking the Kogan family, who “mean so much to the story of Chicago.” As a lifelong Chica- goan, Conn cited the many ways Chicago has been at the crossroads of communica- tions history: as a telephone network hub

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