Sullivan native Trevis 梅菲尔德 received a Friend of the First Amendment Award from the Iowa Freedom of Information Council in September. 梅菲尔德, who majored in journalism at Indiana State University and once worked for the Sullivan Daily Times, was one of three 2019 recipients of the annual recognition.

The son of Bill and Delora 梅菲尔德, he is a 1984 graduate of Sullivan High School and 1988 graduate of ISU.

梅菲尔德, the editor and publisher of the Maquoketa Sentinel-Press since 2014, has shown that important public accountability reporting can be done effectively even with a small news staff, said Randy Evans, executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council.

梅菲尔德 and his staff used Iowa’s public records law to press government officials for answers when a local prosecutor was let off with a misdemeanor ticket after she and her boyfriend were drinking alcohol while she drove, 埃文斯说. Public questions arose when it became known that a law officer had driven the prosecutor back to Maquoketa, Iowa where she spent the night in her office in the courthouse. Adding to the questions were the decisions by some officials to withhold body camera and dash-camera videos of the incident and inaccurate public statements about what transpired, 他补充说.

梅菲尔德’s strong columns and editorials focused on the importance of government officials making the videos public to put to rest questions about whether the prosecutor received preferential treatment because she works closely with law officers, 埃文斯说.

“This award belongs to our entire staff,” 梅菲尔德 said. “Everyone in our organization has contributed to this ongoing effort one way or another. Elected and appointed officials are accountable to no one but the public, and it’s a fundamental part of a newspaper’s job to do its best to keep them informed, no matter the size of the community.”

梅菲尔德 and his wife, 南希, own Sycamore Media, which operates three newspapers, 一本杂志, specialty publications and digital products in Eastern Iowa.

Over the past 30 years, 梅菲尔德 has worked in newsrooms and as a publisher and chief operating officer at media companies in South Carolina; Tampa, Florida; the Chicago metro area; Terre Haute; and Dixon, 伊利诺斯州.