Hall of Fame reporter Anita Lee follows the BP money and earns top MS journalism award
“This is not an Anita Lee story.”
That’s what several people have told me when they recalled seeing the Sun Herald reporter’s name pop up on their phones.
Anita’s reputation as one of Mississippi’s best investigative reporters proceeds her, so people can sometimes be on high alert when she calls, even if she’s writing a feature story or trying to save an animal or help a person in need.
Throughout her time at the Sun Herald, Anita has reported some some of the most explosive and memorable stories in history, from the Sherry murders during the Dixie Mafia era to the downfall and convictions of ex-Department of Marine Resources Director Bill Walker and his son, businessman Scott Walker.
On Friday, Anita was inducted to the Mississippi Press Association’s Hall of Fame in Jackson.
Sun Herald Executive Editor Blake Kaplan nominated Anita for the prestigious award and spoke at a reception honoring her in Flowood.
“She is the heart and soul and face of the Sun Herald on the Mississippi Gulf Coast,” Blake said. “Anita is rock star.”
Anita told the room of Mississippi journalists, editors and fellow Hall of Fame inductees about her time covering the news in Biloxi since 1987 and said she thought of renowned investigative journalist Bill Minor, her mentor and friend.
For years, I had the absolute pleasure of sitting next to Anita in the former Sun Herald building on DeBuys Road. When we weren’t rating fashion red carpets or dishing about the latest Kardashian drama, Anita would often tell me about her coverage of the stories that reshaped history in the Biloxi area. I’ve always joked that you could learn more about the Coast on a cigarette break with Anita than you could at the library.
As a new editor, I consider Anita not only a colleague but an inspiration. There is no one more deserving of the honor of being recognized for their body of work in the Magnolia State.
Anita’s latest Sun Herald investigation, in partnership with ProPublica, examined how state lawmakers were spending millions of dollars of BP oil spill money that created few high-paying jobs. The story won the Bill Minor award for General News reporting at Saturday’s Mississippi Press Association Better Newspaper Contest.
The Sun Herald brought home 23 awards this year, including top honors for our trial coverage of a vet who faked his own death, reporting and social media posts on the killing of two Bay St. Louis police officers and our exploration into the future of a historic Black neighborhood in downtown Bay St. Louis.
