By Mary Sisk
Rock River Current
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OREGON — An Oregon High School graduate has won a Pulitzer Prize for investigative journalism for his work in Tampa Bay, Florida. He gives credit, in part, to the early influence of his high school teachers.

Tampa Bay Times data reporter Eli Murray, along with coworkers Corey G. Johnson and Rebecca Woolington, won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for their series “Poisoned.” The series examined how hundreds of workers at the Gopher Resource factory in Tampa were exposed to high levels of lead. It prompted the implementation of new safety measures.

Murray credits some of his inspiration to teachers at Oregon High School who showed him how to develop skills he would later use in his career, specifically in math, art and English.

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Murray specifically mentions his senior English teacher, John Young, as the first person to encourage him to pursue journalism. 

“He impressed on me the importance of seeking truth and being informed about the world around me, which ultimately led me to pursue journalism when I went to the University of Illinois,” said Murray, a 2012 Oregon graduate.

Murray attended Sauk Valley Community College and the University of Illinois to study journalism. He joined the Tampa Bay Times in 2015, working as a data reporter and creating custom visualizations.

This is the 14th Pulitzer Prize awarded to the Tampa Bay Times.

More information

Additional information on the award and the winning work can be found here.

This article is by Mary Sisk. Email her at msisk@rockrivercurrent.com or follow her on Instagram at @maryrrcurrent