Hillary Clinton, the former United States Secretary of State, will be the keynote speaker at the Toner Prize award celebration in Washington D.C. on March 23.

The Toner Prize for Excellence in Political Reporting, sponsored by Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, was created in 2009 to honor the life of late Newhouse alumna, Robin Toner. Clinton knew Toner from her time as a political reporter and was the first choice of speaker of Toner’s husband.

After graduating from Syracuse University with a dual degree from Newhouse and the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Toner went on to hold positions at the Charleston Daily Mail, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and eventually, The New York Times. While at The Times, Toner became the first female chief political correspondent, serving for almost 25 years and covering five presidential campaigns. Toner died of complications from cancer in 2008 at the age of 54.

The Toner Prize, which includes a $5,000 cash reward, is awarded annually by Newhouse to political reporters who exemplify and reflect the rich quality and high standard of journalism characteristic of Toner’s work, according to its official website. Past recipients of the prize include Karen Tumulty of The Washington Post, Molly Ball of The Atlantic and Craig Harris of The Arizona Republic.

When it came time to decide who would be speaking at this year’s ceremonies, Peter Gosselin, Toner’s husband, said he knew he wanted to ask Clinton to fill the role.

“Robin and I met as competitors covering Ms. Clinton and the health care plan in ’93 and ’94,” he said. “When Clinton heard we were getting married, she wrote us a really sweet note. In 2008, when (Robin) died, she wrote us again. So I wrote her a letter and reminded her of this history, and she agreed.”

Although other candidates were considered, Clinton was Gosselin’s No. 1 option from the start.

“I tried on all sorts of directions, but I sort of had my heart set on Ms. Clinton because of the history,” he said. “She’s been involved with our family since the get-go.”

Charlotte Grimes, the administrator of the Toner Program since its origin, said in an email that she also feels that Clinton is the perfect choice speaker for the award ceremony.

“Hillary Rodham Clinton is a superstar of politics and public service,” Grimes said. “She knew Robin Toner, who covered much of Ms. Clinton’s career as a reporter with The New York Times. So Ms. Clinton also brings a very personal and human connection to Robin and Robin’s family.”

Clinton will not only deliver star-power to the Toner Prize celebration; she will also accurately embody and portray the history-making qualities that Toner displayed as a person and as a journalist, Grimes said.

The Toner Prize is the only award of its kind — the only award that honors and recognizes outstanding political reporting on any platform. By way of this recognition, Robin Toner’s advancements and legacy in the field of political reporting will be immortalized.

“The Robin Toner Program, and especially the Toner Prize, is meant to keep alive the fact-based reporting that Robin epitomized,” Grimes said.

Grimes is assisted in planning the event by Audrey Burian, special projects coordinator for Newhouse. Burian, who is responsible for coordinating the venue, menu, ticket sales and seating arrangements for the celebration, said she believes the strong political reporting recognized by the Toner Prize is essential to the democracy of the nation.

“Seeking the truth and reporting factual political issues is crucial. Excellence in political reporting is how we as citizens make our judgments on who to vote for,” Burian said. “And without that kind of excellence, we’d be blind.”

Published on January 28, 2015 at 12:01 am

Contact Brigid: brkenned@syr.edu