Philip P. Kerby (1911–1993) was an American
editorial writer who worked for the ''
Los Angeles Times'' from 1971 to 1985. He won the
Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing in 1976.
With only a high school education, Kerby was "regarded as highly self-educated and extremely bright".
Otis Chandler
Otis Chandler (November 23, 1927 – February 27, 2006) was the publisher of the ''Los Angeles Times'' between 1960 and 1980, leading a large expansion of the newspaper and its ambitions. He was the fourth and final member of the Chandler fami ...
said to Kerby when he won the Pulitzer, "You have raised the intellectual level of this newspaper". His specialty was criminal justice, governmental censorship, and secrecy.
Early years and education
Kirby was born on December 24 in
Pueblo, Colorado
Pueblo () is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 111,876 at the 2020 United States Census, making Pueblo the ninth most popu ...
, where he graduated from
Centennial High School in 1931. He studied at
Harvard University from 1957 to 1958 through a
Ford Foundation grant.
Career
Kirby began his journalism career as a reporter for the ''Pueblo Star-Journal Chieftain'', then he became an
editorial writer until 1942. He moved to radio, joining
KGHF in 1947, where he won an award as an outstanding radio journalist. In 1948, Kirby became the editor of ''Rocky Mountain Life'', then the editor at ''Frontier Magazine'', then the associate editor of
''The Nation''. He joined the ''Los Angeles Times'' as senior editorial writer in 1971.
Awards
Kirby received the
Denver Press Club Award as an outstanding radio journalist in 1947. He won the Pulitzer Prize in the "Editorial Writing" category in 1976 for "articles against government secrecy and judicial censorship". He received the Public Service award from the
State Bar of California
The State Bar of California is California's official attorney licensing agency. It is responsible for managing the admission of lawyers to the practice of law, investigating complaints of professional misconduct, prescribing appropriate disciplin ...
in 1983.
References
1911 births
1993 deaths
People from Pueblo, Colorado
Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing winners
20th-century American journalists
American male journalists
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