A multi-award-winning broadcast journalist who got his start at WPKY in Princeton and became known throughout the world is retiring at the end of March.
Growing up in Crider and graduating from Caldwell County, Al Tompkins furthered his education by attending Murray State University and then graduated from Western Kentucky University, where he earned his degree in journalism. He then went on to pursue his graduate studies at the University of Nebraska and finished his Masters at the University of Florida in journalism and digital design.
During an interview with Your News Edge on Thursday, Tompkins, who was hired by Twyman Boren at a young age, fondly refers to himself as one of many “Twyman Babies” who began their journalism careers at WPKY before branching out to other radio and television stations across the country.
click to download audioTompkins briefly went to Murray State and worked at WNBS and then he moved to a radio station in Bowling Green, where he discovered a knack for news reporting, rather than entertainment, and launched his career in journalism. He then transitioned to news reporting and photography at radio stations and then video at television stations in Kentucky and Tennessee. He found success at WTVF-Channel 5 in Nashville, WBKO in Bowling Green, WPSD-Channel 6 in Paducah, and ultimately WMSV Channel 4 in Nashville, where he worked for 15 years and became the news director and ran the investigative unit. In 1998, after some faculty guest teaching, he started at the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Florida.
click to download audio
For over 15 years, Tompkins has been providing daily columns to fellow journalists. He said “it’s an interesting job” because on Thursday he was working with the television station in Florida where a journalist was shot and killed while covering a homicide.
click to download audioAs far as advice for young journalists, Tompkins said to find yourself someone like Twyman who will give you a shot and mentor you while forgiving you of “your awfulness in your early days.” But, Tompkins says the other thing he would say is when he dropped by WPKY after the tornado it reaffirmed to him the power of radio when people were stopping by the studio and had an open microphone to get out vital information.
click to download audioTompkins has been recognized for his outstanding work with numerous prestigious awards, including the Peabody, the national Emmy, the America Bar Association’s Silver Gavel, seven National Headliner Awards, The Japan Prize, the Robert F. Kennedy Award, the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Governor’s Award for lifetime achievement, and the National Press Photographers Association’s highest award, the Sprague Award. He was also inducted into the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame.
On Monday, Tompkins will be sharing with WPKY‘s News Edge some of the local stories he has covered that were most meaningful to him, as well as how journalism has changed since he began his career.
