SBU School of Journalism Presents

The “My Life As…” Series

Michael Rezendes
“My Life as an investigative reporter”

 

 

By John Darminio

Michael Rezendes, a Boston Globe reporter who shared in a 2003 Pulitzer Prize for stories on the Catholic Church sex abuse scandal, said Wednesday, Oct. 7 at Stony Brook University that “without journalism we have no informed citizenry and without an informed citizenry we have no democracy.”

Speaking in connection with the “My Life As…” lecture series sponsored by the university’s journalism school, Rezendes, 55, told approximately 300 students and faculty that reporting is a “daunting task,” but, as the abuse investigation proved, “deeply, deeply rewarding.”

Rezendes told aspiring journalists they must be unrelenting when pursuing stories in order to keep the public informed. “You’ll be making a positive difference,” he said. “You might even get to change the world.”

With other members of the Globe’s “Spotlight” investigative team, Rezendes wrote extensively about the church’s attempt to cover up dozens of sexual abuse cases involving priests and children. After the series ran, 150 priests in the Boston area left the ranks and Cardinal Bernard Law transferred to Rome. The Globe’s story won a Pulitizer for public service in 2003.  

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