In Memory of Bill Minor: Veteran Journalist and Common Cause Mississippi Vice President Emeritus

Common Cause Mississippi Vice President Emeritus and veteran journalist Bill Minor passed away on March 28th. He was 94.

Bill Minor was known as the Conscience of Mississippi for his fearless reporting and commentary. He viewed himself as a champion for the little guy, and for the truth.

Bill Minor began covering Mississippi for the New Orleans Times Picayune in 1947, and became a stringer for the New York Times and Newsweek. He covered the trial of Emmitt Till’s killers, Governor Bilbo’s funeral, and Bobby Kennedy’s visit to the Mississippi Delta in 1968.

His friend and fellow journalist Hank Klibanoff said of him, “Bill loved Mississippi, even as he was its fiercest critic. It was all about making Mississippi better.”

In 1997, Bill Minor was the first winner of the John Chancellor Award for Excellence in Journalism, and he attended every award ceremony afterwards until his health prevented him. He wrote a regular column for the Jackson, Mississippi CLARION LEDGER until the close of 2016.

Hodding Carter III, who served in the Carter administration and knew Minor well, called him “a model for anybody who cared about the business of being a journalist. He looked at the world around him, and he tried to report it as it was. He looked at the world around him, and he tried to say in his commentary, ‘We can do better.’”

Bill Minor served on the Common Cause Mississippi Board for at least 15 years, and was celebrated at the Common Cause Mississippi Membership Banquet in 2008. His fellow board members have given him great tribute for his tireless efforts for good government.

From Richard Conville: “What a warrior Bill has been! fighting always for the good!”

From Barbara Powell: “Bill will be sorely missed. There will be a big void in Mississippi news commentary without Bill and a loss of memory about Mississippi history.”

From Sid Davis: “Bill Minor has been my hero and political mentor, and a great Mississippi statesman.”

From Janet Clark: “A giant is passing.”

From Lynn Evans: “Bill Minor’s indefatigable courage and his sharp skill as a journalist have made Mississippi a better place.”