MURRAY – The 2025 McGaughey Lecture on Press Freedom and Responsibility will feature NPR National Political Correspondent Don Gonyea in Lovett Auditorium on Murray State’s campus on Oct. 22 at 7:00 p.m.
The lecture is free to the public.
Since 2010, Don Gonyea has served as NPR’s National Political Correspondent, known for his immersive, on-the-ground reporting from across the United States during elections. He began covering politics full-time for NPR during the 2000 presidential campaign, serving as White House Correspondent throughout George W. Bush’s presidency and reporting live on events such as the aftermath of September 11.
Gonyea has covered multiple presidential campaigns, traveled internationally to report on diplomacy and global events, and filed stories from locations including Moscow, Beijing, London, and Hanoi.
He began his career at NPR in 1986 reporting on labor unions, the automobile industry, and local Michigan issues, earning numerous awards, including contributing to NPR’s 2000 Peabody Award. In addition to reporting, he occasionally hosts NPR news programs, contributes to other media outlets, and teaches journalism, and he is an honors graduate of Michigan State University from Monroe, Michigan.
The event was created by the McGaughey Fund for Excellence in Journalism and Mass Communication which was established in 2020 through a generous bequest from the late Robert H. “Doc” McGaughey.
“Doc McGaughey was a devout believer in press freedom,” said long-time colleague Robert Valentine. “He was equally devoted to the concept of press responsibility to public service. As a leader of the faculty at Murray State University, he devoted his life to those principles in teaching and in practice.”
McGaughey began his professional career at Murray State as an advisor to The MSU News. In 1974, he became chairman of the newly formed Department of Journalism and Radio/TV.
His legacy continues with student journalism on campus – and the training of the next generation with the principles and ethics of responsible and accurate reporting. The event also highlights and benefits the work of WKMS – Murray State University’s NPR station, and The Murray State News.
