Dennis Moore, a prolific journalist and graduate of the University of Mississippi, will receive the Silver Em award Wednesday.
The award, presented by the Meek School of Journalism and New Media, is one of the highest journalism honors given by the university.
It is reserved for natives of Mississippi or those who have spent a large amount of their journalism career in Mississippi.
Moore’s career has spanned over 40 years, and in that time he has worked for numerous newspapers and magazines, both as an editor and as a writer.
Photo courtesy Mississippi Today
His career began in the 1970s when he enrolled at the University of Mississippi and started searching to find a major that suited him.
Moore said that although journalism always fascinated him, he wasn’t immediately drawn to it as a career. It took some time before he realized it was where he was supposed to be.
“I had visions of being a doctor, a psychologist; I even dabbled in accounting,” Moore said. “But honestly, journalism fit my personality and interests.”
Moore said he remembers being consumed with current events all the way back to elementary school, when he asked his parents to buy him subscriptions to Newsweek and Time magazine.
“I didn’t understand half of what was in there,” Moore said. “But it was fascinating to me.”
During his time at the university, Moore worked on the staff of The Daily Mississippian as a reporter and later as the assignment editor. He completed his degree in 1975, going on to work at the Clarion-Ledger in Jackson and then the Orlando Sentinel in Florida.
If he had any doubts before choosing journalism as his career, they quickly subsided. He dove in, taking in all the experience he could. The choice, Moore said, would end up being more lucrative than he could have ever hoped.
“I didn’t dream big; I dreamed of getting a job,” Moore said. “And I got that job. That’s why I went to Orlando. It offered a news organization with bigger resources and bigger ambitions. I was able to grow and have much broader experiences. My ambitions grew as my experience grew.”
He went on to work as managing editor of the Life section of USA Today, which he called “the pinnacle of pop-culture coverage in journalism.”
Working for a national newspaper had its differences from regional papers like the Clarion-Ledger, Moore said. The essence of what he knew as a journalist, however, didn’t change.
“The basics are the same: accurate, fair reporting; interesting, inviting writing,” Moore said. “The grand thing about working for USA Today is everyone returns your phone call. You get to meet big stars, big government officials, big names.”
Moore said that throughout his time working he would remind himself to go back to his roots, to focus on the ethics and honesty that had been drilled into him his entire life.
“It’s a real rush,” Moore said. “But you have to remember the roots of journalism because even though you’re on a bigger stage, you must employ the same skills and ethics. That doesn’t change.”
Moore currently works as a co-editor for Mississippi Today, a digital news site providing nonpartisan reporting on Mississippi issues. He works alongside co-editor Fred Anklam, another Ole Miss alumnus.
Moore said helping start Mississippi Today was an exciting new adventure for him.
“This had been percolating for a few years,” Moore said. “How many opportunities does one get to create something from scratch? Especially a news organization unlike anything the state has ever seen. You combine your love of journalism, your love of Mississippi and your ambition to make the state a better place. We’ve enjoyed every bit of it.”
Mississippi Today celebrated its first anniversary on March 28.
The people Moore has worked with over the years attest to his professionalism and excellence as a writer and an editor.
“He’s calm and even-keeled, and that’s really a quality an editor needs – and not all editors have,” Lee Ragland, vice president of public relations at the Godwin Agency in Jackson, said. “He’s someone who can remain calm within the storm. He’s likeable, easygoing – just a good guy and a top-notch editor.”
Despite all his accomplishments and achievements over his lifetime, Moore said he was surprised to hear he would be receiving the Silver Em from the university.
“I certainly do not believe that I have had the career of the caliber of some of the people who have won this award before me,” Moore said. “I have not risked my life in a war, and I have not uncovered corruption in the civic arena. My career has been a bit different, but I hope that I have applied the same rigorous, ethical parameters to that news as anyone else does.”
The Meek School will present the award to Moore at the Best of Meek dinner in the Ballroom of The Inn at Ole Miss.
