ELAC Alum Steve Padilla Inducted into NAHJ Hall of Fame
HOLLYWOOD, CA - East Los Angeles College alum Steve Padilla was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists Saturday. Padilla is editor of Column One, the Los Angeles Times front page story-telling showcase.
Padilla began his career as a journalism major at ELAC, where he was editor-in-chief of Campus News, before transferring to USC, where he worked on the Daily Trojan.
He spent a short time as a reporter with the San Diego Union, then was an editor with Hispanic Link in Washington, D.C. before joining the L.A. Times 36 years ago. There he began as a night police reporter, but soon became an editor. A story he edited on a botched bank robbery in North Hollywood in 1987 won a Pulitzer Prize.
At the Times, he has been an editor of national politics, higher education and religion before taking his current role. He also headed Metpro, the Times’ training program to bring diversity to newsrooms.
Padilla’s father was ELAC’s championship football coach and Padilla maintains a close relationship with the college. He is on the advisory committee of the ELAC Journalism Department. In his acceptance speech, Padilla said was excited that his ELAC journalism professor Jean Stapleton was in attendance.
Stapleton, who is still teaching at ELAC, said she was thrilled to see one of her former students receive such a high honor.
“I’m so proud of Steve and all he has achieved and I appreciate the fact that, even though he is in demand as a writing coach at newspapers across the country, he always takes time to make a presentation to my students whenever I ask him to,” said Stapleton.
The other three honorees were Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews, president of CBS News; John Quinones, ABC News correspondent; and Rafael Prieto Zartha, editorial director of Que Pasa-Mi Gente and a founding member of NAHJ.
Every year, NAHJ proudly recognizes individuals who have courageously upheld their mission to expand the number of Latinos in newsrooms and improve coverage of Latino communities. These individuals demonstrate a commitment to the profession, paving the way for other Latino journalists. They have practiced journalistic values with distinction while inspiring others to do the same. Members of NAHJ’s Hall of Fame have been leaders, mentors and pioneers in the field.
About East Los Angeles College
ELAC is the largest of nine two-year community colleges within the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD), www.laccd.edu. More information about ELAC is available online at http://www.elac.edu/. Follow ELAC on social media, Instagram @ELACHuskies, and Facebook @Eastlacollege