Full Circle: Late Herald publisher Sam D. Kennedy elected to TN newspaper Hall of Fame

Kerri Bartlett, Columbia Daily Herald
·4 min read
Betty and husband, the late Herald publisher Sam D. Kennedy, are pictured at a Tennessee Press Association Convention in 1979 when Mr. Kennedy was named president of the Tennessee Press Association. Mrs. Kennedy holds a picture of her late father, John W. Finney, who, like Kennedy, was president of the association, publisher and owner of the Herald and named to the Newspaper Hall of Fame.

The Daily Herald came full circle last week when Sam D. Kennedy was inducted posthumously into the TPA Hall of Fame for his contributions to the newspaper industry, while present day Herald staff also grabbed first place spots for its reporting on the Kennedy family.

The publication won two First Place awards from the Tennessee Press Association last Friday for its coverage of rural farming and land loss in Tennessee, featuring Kennedy's grandson Sam Kennedy, III, and the family's century farm.

Winning article "Maury County century farmer preserves family farmland in fight to sustain rural life in Tennessee," featuring farmer Sam Kennedy, III, grandson of the late Herald publisher Sam D. Kennedy, took home the first place plaque at the TPA awards luncheon on July 21.

Later that day at a separate TPA awards banquet, the late Kennedy was inducted into the TPA Hall of Fame for his lifelong impact on the newspaper industry, including fight to obtain open government rules of transparency, or "Sunshine" laws, which stand today.

PHOTOS: Meet the family behind a working century farm in Maury County

Lifelong dedication to truth, accuracy, transparency

The late Sam D. Kennedy, born in 1926, served as publisher of The Daily Herald in Columbia, Tennessee from 1965 to 1984 and the Lawrence County Advocate from 1985 until his death in 2018.

He was voted by his peers into the Tennessee Newspaper Hall of Fame and was officially inducted last week.

The late Sam D. Kennedy, former The Daily Herald Columbia publisher and president of Kennedy Newspapers, was inducted into the Tennessee Newspaper Hall of Fame at the Tennessee Press Association’s summer meeting last week in Franklin. A crowd of family, friends, colleagues and former staff gathered to honor Kennedy. (Back row, left to right) former publisher of the Daily Herald Keith Ponder; former Herald reporter Sue McClure, son-in-law Billy Blackstone; former Kennedy Newspaper/Lawrence County Advocate General Manager John Finney; Sandy Finney; former Advocate Editor Joe Baxter; grandsons Emory Blackstone, Jack Blackstone, and Sam Kennedy III; former Herald Editor Tony Kessler; Richard Schilling; and Glen Stewart. In the front row are former Herald General Manager Betty Stewart; Sam D. Kennedy's daughter Elizabeth Kennedy Blackstone (holding award); cousin Jan Finney Schilling; granddaughter Eliza Blackstone; Emily O’Connell; granddaughter-in-law Rachel Kennedy, former Advocate editor Nancy Brewer, and Advocate Editor LaShawn Baxter.

Over a dozen Kennedy and Finney family members, with a rich history in the newspaper publishing business, gathered at the awards banquet to honor Sam D. Kennedy's impactful contributions to the industry.

Kennedy began his career as a lawyer and a judge in Maury County.

He used his legal experience as valuable background after he took over as publisher of the Columbia Daily Herald after his father-in-law’s (then publisher John Finney) death in 1965.

Sam D. Kennedy, late The Daily Herald publisher, president of Tennessee Press Association and posthumous inductee into the TPA Hall of Fame.
Sam D. Kennedy, late The Daily Herald publisher, president of Tennessee Press Association and posthumous inductee into the TPA Hall of Fame.

He became an outspoken advocate for open government. As Chairman of the Tennessee Press Association’s Government Relations Committee for over 30 years, he helped author and pass state reporter’s shield laws and Sunshine laws (outlining rules for open meetings and records) in the 1970’s. His efforts were commemorated when he was named to the National Open Government Hall of Fame (a joint venture by the Society of Professional Journalists and the National Freedom of Information Coalition) in 2016.

Over the course of his time as President of Kennedy Newspapers, Kennedy published The Daily Herald, the Mount Pleasant Record, the Lawrence County Advocate, the Parsons News Leaders, The Waverly Democrat, and the Buffalo River Review.

More on the Kennedys: Maury Co. farmer, officials battle to protect Duck River as House considers scenic status bill

He also served as Maury County Executive from 1992 to 1996.

Tony Kessler, who served as editor of the Daily Herald under Kennedy in the early 80s and later served as editor of the Nashville Banner, attended the Friday event.

His official comments in support of Kennedy’s nomination said: “He was fair, honest, friendly, and ethical toward everyone and he had a lasting impact on my life”.

Sam Kennedy III and wife Rachel, who own Kettle Mills Farms, attend a House hearing with their children in support of a bill that would preserve the Duck River, which runs through their property in Maury County.
Sam Kennedy III and wife Rachel, who own Kettle Mills Farms, attend a House hearing with their children in support of a bill that would preserve the Duck River, which runs through their property in Maury County.

'The Good Giant' leaves lasting impact

Kennedy's daughter Elizabeth Kennedy Blackstone accepted the Newspaper Hall of Fame Award for her father last Friday.

“Transparency in government and the role the press should play in ensuring it were fundamental to my father’s life’s work," Blackstone said.

"In 2016, our old friend and colleague, the now late Bill Williams, Publisher of the Paris Post Intelligencer, was quoted as saying ‘If Tennessee’s battles over freedom of information were folklore, Sam Kennedy would have played the role of the good giant’ and that is what my father was to me — The Good Giant”.

Sam Kennedy III, right, creep through the property to spot a buck while his children Sam Kennedy IV, left and Margaret Kennedy as well as their beagle, Whitey, follow his lead in Columbia, Tenn. on Nov. 29, 2022.
Sam Kennedy III, right, creep through the property to spot a buck while his children Sam Kennedy IV, left and Margaret Kennedy as well as their beagle, Whitey, follow his lead in Columbia, Tenn. on Nov. 29, 2022.

Legacy of Herald leadership makes way for progress

Kennedy was the 61st inductee to the Hall of Fame, marking the third time the honor has come to former Daily Herald publishers, and the third generation of the Finney-Kennedy family to receive the honor.

Kennedy’s wife of 63 years, the late Betty Finney Kennedy, was the daughter of the 15th inductee John W. Finney, inducted in 1973, and the granddaughter of the 12th inductee, James I. Finney, inducted in 1971.

The Tennessee Newspaper Hall of Fame was established in 1966 as a joint project of the Tennessee Press Association and the University of Tennessee. The program recognizes and memorializes "extraordinary and clearly outstanding" contributions to newspaper journalism and the newspaper industry. The award is posthumous. For more information, see https://tnpress.com/hall-of-fame/.

The late Sam D. Kennedy's son Delk Kennedy is owner of WOKM radio in Columbia, while grandson Sam Kennedy, III, operates Kettle Mills century farm in Columbia. The family most recently fought for state protections to the Duck River, which runs through the family farm, to maintain clean water for residents, animals and aquatic life. His daughter Elizabeth Blackstone has served as editor of Kennedy Publishing and editor of The Advocate in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Herald: Late Herald publisher Sam D. Kennedy elected to newspaper Hall of Fame