Eric Eyre (born c. 1965) is an American journalist and investigative reporter, best known for winning the Pulitzer Prize in investigative reporting for exposing the opioid crisis in West Virginia. He was a statehouse reporter for the ''

Charleston Gazette-Mail The ''Charleston Gazette-Mail'' is a non-daily morning newspaper in Charleston, West Virginia. It is the product of a July 2015 merger between ''The Charleston Gazette'' and the '' Charleston Daily Mail''. It is one of nine papers owned by HD M ...

''. He resigned his position in April 2020. He is also the author of the book, ''Death in Mud Lick: A Coal Country Fight Against the Drug Companies That Delivered the Opioid Epidemic''.

Career

Eyre graduated from Loyola University of New Orleans. He earned his master's degree in Mass Communication at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg. During his time at the university, Eyre worked as an intern at the ''

St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', called the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It is published by the Times Publishing Company, which is owned by The Poynter Institute f ...

''. Eyre has reported for ''

The Anniston Star ''The Anniston Star'' is the daily newspaper serving Anniston, Alabama, and the surrounding six-county region. Average Sunday circulation in September 2004 was 26,747. However, by 2020 it was approximately half of this. The newspaper is locally ...

'' of

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, the ''

Daily Times-Advocate The ''Daily Times-Advocate'', also called the ''Escondido Times-Advocate'', was a daily newspaper published in Escondido, California. It was founded in 1909 and ceased publication as a separate title in 1995. History ''The Daily Times-Advocate'' ...

'' of

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, and the ''

Pottstown Mercury ''The Mercury'' is a daily newspaper published in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, United States. Awards ''The Mercury'' is the smallest circulation newspaper in the U.S. to have its staffers win two Pulitzer Prizes. In 1979, staff photographer Thomas ...

'' of

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. In 1998 Eyre began covering education, health, and business at the ''

Charleston Gazette The ''Charleston Gazette-Mail'' is a non-daily morning newspaper in Charleston, West Virginia. It is the product of a July 2015 merger between ''The Charleston Gazette'' and the '' Charleston Daily Mail''. It is one of nine papers owned by HD M ...

,'' now the ''Charleston Gazette-Mail.'' The Gazette-Mail is a daily morning newspaper in

Charleston, West Virginia Charleston () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in West Virginia, most populous city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is the county seat of Kanawha County, West Virginia, Kanawha County and ...

with a daily print circulation of around 37,000. Eyre worked at the Gazette-Mail until 2020, where he balanced his work as a full-time statehouse reporter and his pursuit of investigative projects spotlighting issues in the rural communities of West Virginia. He also formerly worked at Mountain State Spotlight, where he was a co-founder and senior investigative reporter.

Awards and recognition

Eyre's work has received national recognition on several occasions. He has been the recipient of the following: *

Investigative Reporters and Editors Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc. (IRE) is an American nonprofit organization that focuses on improving the quality of journalism, in particular investigative journalism. Formed in 1975, it presents the IRE Awards and holds conferences a ...

(IRE) Medal * National Headliners Award * Fred M. Hechinger Grand Prize in education reporting from the Education Writers Association *

Society of American Business Editors and Writers A society () is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soc ...

award * 2003

Gerald Loeb Award The Gerald Loeb Awards, also referred to as the Gerald Loeb Awards for Distinguished Business and Financial Journalism, is a recognition of excellence in journalism, especially in the fields of business, finance and the economy. The award was e ...

for Small Newspaper for "A License to Steal" *

Association of Health Care Journalists The Association of Health Care Journalists is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing public understanding of health care issues. Its mission is to improve the quality, accuracy and visibility of health care reporting, writ ...

award *

Kaiser Family Foundation KFF, which was formerly known as The Kaiser Family Foundation or The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, is an American non-profit organization, non-profit organization, headquartered in San Francisco, San Francisco, California. It prefers KFF, w ...

fellowship *

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

in investigative reporting for “courageous reporting, performed in the face of powerful opposition, to expose the flood of opioids flowing into depressed West Virginia counties with the highest overdose death rates in the country” * 2017 Gerald Loeb Award for Local business journalism for "Painkiller Profiteers"

Published works

Much of Eyre's work has been published through the Charleston Gazette-Mail. Some of his most notable published works include: * “Death in Mud Lick: A Coal Country Fight against the Drug Companies That Delivered the Opioid Epidemic" (2020) * “Painkiller Profiteers” (2016) * “The Meth Menace” (2013) * “Wired for Waste” (2012) * “The Well Connected” (2012) * “Grants, Graft and Greed at Workforce West Virginia” (2009) * “State of Decay: West Virginia's Oral Health Crisis” (2007) * “Web of Deceit: The Fall of West Virginia House Education Committee Chairman Jerry Mezzatesta” (2004) * “Taken for a Ride” (2003) * “The Long Haul and Broken Promises” (2002) * “License to Steal” (2002)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eyre, Eric Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting winners American investigative journalists 1960s births Living people Loyola University New Orleans alumni University of South Florida faculty Gerald Loeb Award winners for Small and Medium Newspapers Gerald Loeb Award winners for Local