The Syracuse Press Club is excited to announce the winner of our prestigious 2022 Bill Carey Award for Journalist of the Year.
Patrick O’Toole is a managing editor at Spectrum News 1. In his role, he oversees the planning and production for “Your Morning on Spectrum News 1” in Albany, Syracuse, Rochester and Buffalo.
In his nomination of Patrick, Ray Sullivan wrote: “2021 was a crucial year for Spectrum News 1 here in Central New York and across out entire network. Patrick O’Toole played a huge role in the success we achieved. Most importantly, Patrick is someone who understands that our people are our most important investment. Our team members love working with Patrick, and it’s easy to see how much he cares for all of them.”
O’Toole is a veteran of Spectrum News. He joined the network in 2007 and moved into an executive producer role in Syracuse in 2012. In 2021, he stepped into his current role as managing editor. Prior to Spectrum News 1, O’Toole began his career as a producer at WTVH-5 in Syracuse.
O’Toole received a B.S. in mass communications and a B.S. in Spanish from SUNY Oneonta. He is a graduate of Leadership Greater Syracuse (Class of 2015).
Congratulations Patrick! We look forward to celebrating your hard work at the SPC banquet on May 7, 2022.
The prestigious Bill Carey Journalist of the Year Award is named after longtime Syracuse broadcaster Bill Carey. In a career that spanned more than 40 years, Bill was involved with covering virtually every major story in greater Syracuse since the 1970s. He finished his career as a senior reporter with Time Warner Cable News (now known as Spectrum News 1). Bill was a Syracuse Press Club Wall of Distinction honoree, and a recipient of the Bliven-Ganley-Rossi Career Achievement Award. He had won three Emmys, six RTNDA Murrow Awards and dozens of awards from the Syracuse Press Club and New York Associated Press Broadcasters Association. He was known as a skilled writer, a disciplined editor and a beloved mentor and guiding light to many young journalists. Bill died in 2015 and is missed by many.
Past winners:
• The Post-Standard’s Patrick Lohmann named 2021 Journalist of the Year
• The Citizen’s Kevin Rivoli named 2020 Journalist of the Year