Julian Harris was editor and co-owner of the Columbus Enquirer-Sun. He and his wife, Julia, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1926 for their reporting on the Ku Klux Klan.

Julian Harris was editor and co-owner of the Columbus Enquirer-Sun. He and his wife, Julia, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1926 for their reporting on the Ku Klux Klan. / New Georgia Encyclopedia

The Columbus Sun-Enquirer was the first Southern newspaper to win the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service in 1926. The award recognized the work of the paper’s publishers, Julian and Julia Harris, about laws to block teaching evolution in public schools and exposing Georgia elected officials as secret Ku Klux Klan members. We talk with Greg Lisby, chair of the Communication Department at Georgia State University, about the history of the award for our monthly installment of Pulitzer Peaches. Then, we continue our conversation with reporter Jennifer Berry Hawes of The Post and Courier. She discusses how it’s become a tradition to honor Klan coverage with the public service award. 

Tags: Columbus Sun-Enquirer  Ku Klux Klan  Pulitzer Peaches  Atlanta  Georgia