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APA Legislative Report
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ARKANSAS
Ark a nsa s
PRESS
Publisher Weekly
ASSOCIATION
Serving Press and State Since 1873
Vol. 14 | No. 5 | Thursday, January 31, 2019
Hard work just part of the job for sportswriting award winner Whether Paul Boyd goes to North Carolina in June to pick up his award as Arkansas Sportswriter of the Year will depend on his work schedule. That’s not a surprise, since the 31-year veteran sportswriter won this year’s honor largely because of his exemplary work ethic. Boyd, a sports reporter at the Northwest Arkansas DemocratGazette, covers Rogers High School sports. And Rogers Heritage. And volleyball. And track and field. And minor league baseball. And University of Arkansas women’s basketball. And about anything else his editors throw at him.
annually presents an Arkansan with the state’s top sportswriter award. This is the first win for Boyd, though he was named a finalist by the organization several years ago. He made clear that he truly appreciates the honor and is thankful for
win contests. That’s not what we’re in the business for.’ Being in this for a while now, I don’t know that I would go that far, but I agree with his sentiment. We’re in this business to serve our readers.” Boyd’s dedication to his job has taken him to just about every gym or small town in Arkansas over the course of three decades. Aside from a brief stint early in his career as sports editor in Dennison, Texas, he’s worked in either northeast or northwest Arkansas.
He started at the Jonesboro Sun in 1987 before moving to Texas. He relocated to Clay County after that, covering sports for newspapers in that “No reporter anywhere county for about year. works harder than Paul He then went back to to keep our readers the Sun in the mid-90s. informed,” said Chip Souza, sports editor at Paul Boyd (right), sports reporter for the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, interviews a In 2003, he started as Tuesday after a high school basketball game. Boyd was named this year’s Arkansas night sports editor for the Northwest Arkansas coach sportswriter of the year by the National Sports Media Association. the Morning News of Democrat-Gazette. “I never worry if Paul is on top of every the recognition by his peers, yet just as Northwest Arkansas and became a sports reporter for the Democrat-Gazette after aspect of his beats, which are wide and distinct is his commitment to his job. the northwest Arkansas newspapers’ varied. There are days Paul may write a prep feature in the morning, cover a Boyd got his start at what was then the merger. (UA women’s basketball coach) Mike family-owned Jonesboro Sun under Neighbors media session in the afternoon legendary publisher and editor John Boyd joked that he has covered games and cover a Northwest Arkansas Naturals Troutt, Jr. Troutt wasn’t big on contests, in plenty of places across Arkansas and plenty others that don’t exist anymore. game that night. His work ethic and ability Boyd said. to smoothly shift from one assignment to another are both rare and invaluable to “Am I thankful? Absolutely,” Boyd said. “There aren’t many places (I) haven’t “But I’m going to quote John Troutt here been,” he said. “I’ve covered games our organization.” because I heard him say it many times in in Lynn, Arkansas, and Strawberry, The National Sports Media Association Jonesboro: ‘We’re not in the business to Arkansas, and places that don’t even Continued on Page 2