Shawn “JAY Z” Carter  and Harvey Weinstein Receives the LA Press Club’s First Truthteller Award

The Los Angeles Press Club is proud to announce that Shawn “JAY Z” Carter and Harvey Weinstein are the co-winners of its inaugural Truthteller Award for contributions to the Public Discourse and Cultural Enlightenment of our Society.

Mr. Carter and Mr. Weinstein, in addition to their respective bodies of work, receive the award for their Spike-TV documentary-series “Time: The Kalief Browder Story,” which aired earlier this year to critical praise.
The show brought to light the story of Browder, who was falsely imprisoned for three years in Rikers Prison, mostly in solitary confinement, which led to his suicide.

Both Mr. Carter and Mr. Weinstein are using their prominence in the entertainment industry to dive deep into social issues including criminal justice reform. They are also working on a Trayvon Martin documentary series. Mr. Carter is spearheading an Emmett Till project.

“In our troubled times, we could not find two finer examples of integrity and social responsibility than JAY Z and Harvey Weinstein,” says Los Angeles Press Club President Robert Kovacik, anchor/reporter at NBC4 Southern California.

“Kalief’s story shines a light on the atrocities of not just one young man, but an entire broken system,” TWC Co-Chairman Harvey Weinstein commented. “JAY Z has been the ambassador for this project, and so many others, that shine a light on a community that needs the world to see and never forget individuals like Kalief. The NY Legislature has recently signed the Bill ‘Raise the Age’ to keep individuals under 17 years old from being tried as adults, and to protect them once incarcerated. Steps like this could have changed Kalief’s outcome, and we are hopeful that change will continue to happen and save other lives.”

The Truthteller Award will be presented at the 59th SoCal Journalism Awards Gala on Sunday, June 25th at the Biltmore Millennium Hotel, downtown LA.  More than 500 journalists and media executives will attend this prestigious event.

In addition to honoring Shawn “JAY Z” Carter and Harvey Weinstein at the LAPC Gala Event, NBC News’ Andrea Mitchell will receive the Joseph M Quinn Award for Lifetime Achievement; CNN¹s Jake Tapper will receive the President’s Award for Impact on Media; Australian photojournalist Daniel Berehulak will be honored with the Daniel Pearl Award for Courage and Integrity in Journalism; and Dodger¹s Jaime Jarrin will be bestowed with the Bill Rosendahl Public Service Award for Contributions to Civic Life.

Conan O’Brien and the National Press Club President Jeff Ballou are among the presenters.
Proceeds from the Gala are the largest source of income for the LA Press Club, a 501(c) 3 that speaks for journalists across all media platforms.

All contributions are tax-deductible.

About Los Angeles Press Club

The Los Angeles Press Club stands as an organization devoted to improving the spirit of journalism and journalists, raising the industry’s standards, strengthening its integrity and improving its reputation all for the benefit of the community at large. Serving the Southland since 1913, it is the only Southern California journalism group that speaks for all journalists working for daily and weekly newspapers, radio & TV, magazines, documentary films and online.