Al Cross is director of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at the University of Kentucky . He was at the Louisville Courier-Journal for 26 years, 15½ as political writer, and writes a twice-monthly political column for the newspaper. His awards include a share of the Pulitzer Prize won by the C-J ’s staff in 1989. Cross was president of the Society of Professional Journalists in 2001-02. He is a graduate of Western Kentucky University .