Alabama Legislature Hails Pulitzer Winner -- With Some Dissent

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By: The Alabama House and Senate passed separate resolutions Thursday praising Birmingham News reporter Brett Blackledge, who won a Pulitzer Prize for investigative stories that exposed corruption in the state's two-year college system.

The House earlier had balked at a similar resolution praising Blackledge, whose stories included details on legislators who work for community colleges or have contracts with the system. Several legislators criticized Blackledge's reporting when an attempt was made Tuesday to force the House Rules Committee to consider a resolution praising Blackledge.

But Rep. Alvin Holmes, D-Montgomery, asked House members to reconsider Thursday, saying that the Pulitzer Prize is one of the highest honors for a journalist.

"Passing this resolution doesn't mean you agree with everything he has written," Holmes said.

The resolution was then approved without further comment or dissent. The Senate also passed a resolution honoring Blackledge on Thursday without comment or dissent. Neither was on a recorded vote.

The House earlier this session routinely passed a resolution praising Monroeville native Cynthia Tucker for winning the Pulitzer Prize for her commentaries in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

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