Michael Feeney to Receive the Emerging Journalist of the Year Award by Black Journali

WASHINGTON, D.C. April 28, 2010 – Michael J Feeney of the New York Daily News is this year's Emerging Journalist, selected by the National Association of Black
Journalists announced at its spring Board of Directors meeting. Feeney will join other top honorees at the association’s Salute to Excellence Gala, July 31 in San Diego, during NABJ’s 35th Annual Convention and Career Fair, the largest gathering of minority journalists in the country.

"I'm honored and thrilled to receive such a prestigious award,” said Feeney. "I've been to these (NABJ) conferences since 2002, and I know what these awards mean. This means a great deal to me." 

Feeney joined The New York Daily News in 2009. His work on night shift spans from crime to celebrity news. Prior to working with The New York Daily News, Feeney was a breaking news reporter for The Record (of Bergen County, N.J.). During his two-and-a-half years at the paper he covered municipal government and police. He also crossed over into the new- age of journalism and worked as a Web and multimedia journalist for NorthJersey.com. Feeney started his career at the Associated Press in Baltimore and Detroit. He attended the Knight Multimedia Journalism workshop at the University of California, Berkeley.

"Michael represents where journalism is and where it’s going. He has covered multiple beats in print and lives in a multimedia world. His fresh energy and eagerness to learn are the perfect ingredients for an emerging journalist,” said NABJ President Kathy Y. Times.

Feeney is a graduate of Delaware State University. He also runs his own pop culture blog. Feeney credits the help of NABJ with much of the success in his career and the valuable mentors and friendships he has gained over the years.

"I remember Michael as a young student from Delaware State and a NABJ newbie, he was hungry and wanted to succeed,” said NABJ Treasurer Gregory Lee Jr.  "He is the success story that we hope for in each of our students. He has obviously carried with him everything that he learned early on from his NABJ family and capitalized on it.”

The NABJ Board of Directors isn’t the only group recognizing Feeney for his work. His peers describe him as "a tremendously hard worker who is an aggressive journalist.”

The Salute to Excellence Awards Gala recognizes journalism that best covered the black experience or addressed issues affecting the worldwide black community during 2009. Feeney will be joined by other top honorees, CNN’s Soledad O’Brien for Journalist of the Year, and NABJ Founder Paul Delaney for Lifetime Achievement.
NABJ’s 35th Annual Convention and Career Fair will take place July 28-August 1 in San Diego, Calif. For additional information, ticket sales, registration, please visit us at www.nabj.org, or contact Ryan Williams at rwilliams@nabj. org or (301) 405-0248.