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Clear it with SidneyHow our blog got its name >

 
Notes on journalism for the common good
by Lindsay Beyerstein

How our blog got its name

Sidney Hillman was a powerful national figure during the Great Depression, a key supporter of the New Deal, and a close ally of President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

When the rumor spread that President Roosevelt ordered his party leaders to “clear it with Sidney” before announcing Harry S. Truman as his 1944 running mate, conservative critics turned on the phrase, trumpeting it as proof that the president was under the thumb of “Big Labor.”

Over the years, the phrase lost its sting and became a testament to Hillman's influence.

It's hard to imagine a labor leader wielding that kind clout today, but we like the idea—and we hope Sidney would give thumbs up to our blog.

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#IRE12: Sidney Winner Sara Ganim

Sara Ganim speaking at the Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) conference in Boston. Ganim won the October 2011 Sidney Award for exposing the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal at Penn State. She went on to win the Pulitzer Prize for her coverage of the Sandusky scandal.

IRE is the nation's premiere professional association for investigative journalists. The Sidney Hillman Foundation salutes all of our past winners who presented at IRE 2012.

Comments

It's not altogether clear that Paterno met his legal rbitonsseilipy. If you hear about child abuse, you're obligated to call the police or your state's official child abuse hot line. And even if Paterno did meet his legal obligation, he should have contacted police, not just his administrative superiors. Realizing we don't have all the facts, it's difficult to imagine _any_ scenario explaining why Paterno did not inform the police the very moment he even had an inkling that sexual abuse was occurring. He's obviously not stupid.

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