Dylan Purcell: "Even a Small Story can Make a Change"

October 2, 2020

During an online class of investigative journalism Journalism Department , guest lecturer Dylan Purcell shared with students the process and deliberation with which he uncovered his two Pulitzer prize winning pieces, Toxic City and The Probation Trap.

Purcell emphasized how important it is to use every resource available to get the information you need as a truth-seeker, recalling that at times, when his team could not get access to a dust sample inside of a school (to test if the schools were harming children with exposure to lead), they had to train teachers to test the schools instead, risking the teacher’s jobs for the children’s safety.

On a farewell note, Purcell informed students that his project Toxic City took nine months to investigate, but advised that they should not feel pressured and intimidated to also accept huge projects from the start. Purcell stated that there are smaller, less extensive projects that can still have the same amount of impact.

Credits to: Meighan Johnson, JMC-118.
We want to thank Dylan Purcell for the great lecture and also our student Meighan for the review.

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