Melvin H. Ruder (January 19, 1915 – November 19, 2000) was an American journalist,

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 ...

winner, publisher-emeritus of The Hungry Horse News in

Columbia Falls, Montana Columbia Falls is a city along the Flathead River in Flathead County, Montana, United States. The population was 5,308 at the 2020 census. Columbia Falls has been ranked as one of the best and safest places to live in Montana. History The ...

Early life

Mel Ruder was born January 19, 1915, in

Manning, North Dakota Manning is a small town in, and the county seat of, Dunn County, North Dakota, United States. Manning was founded in 1908 to serve as the seat of Dunn County, itself organized that year. Its population was not reported in the 2000 census, but w ...

. In 1937, Ruder graduated from the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (also known as UND or North Dakota) is a public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It was established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of ...

with a bachelor's degree in journalism and a minor in European history. He would go on to graduate from

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

with a master's degree in sociology in 1942. Ruder served three years as a US Naval officer during World War II.

Career

In 1946, Ruder headed to Columbia Falls, MT where he created the Hungry Horse News which made its debut on August 8, 1946. Ruder's most notable work was his coverage of the June 1964

Flathead River The Flathead River ( fla, label= Salish, člq̓etkʷ ntx̣ʷetkʷ, , kut, kananmituk), in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Montana, originates in the Canadian Rockies to the north of Glacier National Park and flows southwest into Fla ...

flood, during which the Hungry Horse News published more than 12,000 copies in one week. At its peak in the 1960s, Ruder's Hungry Horse News publication had more than 9,000 weekly subscribers from every state. Ruder retired in 1978, after he sold the publication.

Pulitzer Prize

In 1965, Ruder was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in the category of "Local General or Spot News Reporting". His award citation reads: "For his daring and resourceful coverage of a disastrous flood that threatened his community, an individual effort in the finest tradition of spot news reporting."

Later life

in April 1999, Ruder suffered a major stroke. He died less than two years later at the Columbia Falls Veterans Home. Ruder was the subject of the book titled ''Pictures, a Park, and a Pulitzer: Mel Ruder and the Hungry Horse News.'' The book documents the first 32 years of The Hungry Horse News.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruder, Melvin H. 1915 births 2000 deaths American male journalists 20th-century American journalists Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting winners