Eric Eyre (born c. 1965) is an American journalist and investigative reporter, best known for winning the Pulitzer Prize in investigative reporting for exposing the opioid crisis in West Virginia. He was a statehouse reporter for the ''

Charleston Gazette-Mail The ''Charleston Gazette-Mail'' is the only daily morning newspaper in Charleston, West Virginia. It is the product of a July 2015 merger between ''The Charleston Gazette'' and the '' Charleston Daily Mail''. The paper is one of nine owned by HD ...

''. He resigned his position in April 2020. He is also the author of the book, ''Death in Mud Lick: A Coal Country Fight Against the Drug Companies That Delivered the Opioid Epidemic''.

Career

Eyre graduated from

Loyola University of New Orleans Loyola University New Orleans is a private Jesuit university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Originally established as Loyola College in 1904, the institution was chartered as a university in 1912. It bears the name of the Jesuit founder, Saint Ignat ...

. He earned his master's degree in Mass Communication at the

University of South Florida St. Petersburg The University of South Florida St. Petersburg is a campus of the University of South Florida in St. Petersburg, Florida. Opened in 1965 as a satellite campus of the University of South Florida, it was consolidated with the other two USF camp ...

. During his time at the university, Eyre worked as an intern at the ''

St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a single ...

''. Eyre has reported for ''

The Anniston Star ''The Anniston Star'' is the daily newspaper serving Anniston, Alabama, and the surrounding six-county region. Average Sunday circulation in September 2004 was 26,747. However, by 2020 it was approximately half of this. The newspaper is locally ow ...

'' of

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

, the ''

Daily Times-Advocate The ''Daily Times-Advocate'', also called the ''Escondido Times-Advocate'', was a daily newspaper published in Escondido, California. It was founded in 1909 and ceased publication as a separate title in 1995. History ''The Daily Times-Advocate'' ...

'' of

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, and the ''

Pottstown Mercury ''The Mercury'' is a daily newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can ...

'' of

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. In 1998 Eyre began covering education, health, and business at the ''

Charleston Gazette The ''Charleston Gazette-Mail'' is the only daily morning newspaper in Charleston, West Virginia. It is the product of a July 2015 merger between ''The Charleston Gazette'' and the ''Charleston Daily Mail''. The paper is one of nine owned by HD ...

,'' now the ''Charleston Gazette-Mail.'' The Gazette-Mail is a daily morning newspaper in

Charleston, West Virginia Charleston is the capital and List of cities in West Virginia, most populous city of West Virginia. Located at the confluence of the Elk River (West Virginia), Elk and Kanawha River, Kanawha rivers, the city had a population of 48,864 at the 20 ...

with a daily print circulation of around 37,000. Eyre worked at the Gazette-Mail until 2020, where he balanced his work as a full-time statehouse reporter and his pursuit of investigative projects spotlighting issues in the rural communities of West Virginia. He now works at Mountain State Spotlight, where he is co-founder and senior investigative reporter.

Awards and recognition

Eyre's work has received national recognition on several occasions. He has been the recipient of the following: *

Investigative Reporters and Editors Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc. (IRE) is a nonprofit organization that focuses on improving the quality of journalism, in particular investigative journalism. Formed in 1975, it presents the IRE Awards and holds conferences and training ...

(IRE) Medal * National Headliners Award * Fred M. Hechinger Grand Prize in education reporting from the Education Writers Association *

Society of American Business Editors and Writers The Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing is an association of business journalists. Originally founded as the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, in 2018, it changed its name "as part of a broader effort to embrace a g ...

award * 2003

Gerald Loeb Award The Gerald Loeb Award, also referred to as the Gerald Loeb Award for Distinguished Business and Financial Journalism, is a recognition of excellence in journalism, especially in the fields of business, finance and the economy. The award was estab ...

for Small Newspaper for "A License to Steal" *

Association of Health Care Journalists The Association of Health Care Journalists is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing public understanding of health care issues. Its mission is to improve the quality, accuracy and visibility of health care reporting, writi ...

award *

Kaiser Family Foundation KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation), also known as The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, is an American non-profit organization, headquartered in San Francisco, California. It prefers KFF since its legal name can cause confusion as it is no longer a ...

fellowship *

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...

in investigative reporting for “courageous reporting, performed in the face of powerful opposition, to expose the flood of opioids flowing into depressed West Virginia counties with the highest overdose death rates in the country” * 2017 Gerald Loeb Award for Local business journalism for "Painkiller Profiteers"

Published works

Much of Eyre's work has been published through the Charleston Gazette-Mail. Some of his most notable published works include: * “Death in Mud Lick: A Coal Country Fight against the Drug Companies That Delivered the Opioid Epidemic" (2020) * “Painkiller Profiteers” (2016) * “The Meth Menace” (2013) * “Wired for Waste” (2012) * “The Well Connected” (2012) * “Grants, Graft and Greed at Workforce West Virginia” (2009) * “State of Decay: West Virginia's Oral Health Crisis” (2007) * “Web of Deceit: The Fall of West Virginia House Education Committee Chairman Jerry Mezzatesta” (2004) * “Taken for a Ride” (2003) * “The Long Haul and Broken Promises” (2002) * “License to Steal” (2002)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eyre, Eric Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting winners American investigative journalists 1960s births Living people Loyola University New Orleans alumni University of South Florida faculty Gerald Loeb Award winners for Small and Medium Newspapers Gerald Loeb Award winners for Local