The expression “the pen is mightier than the sword” is especially true if the person wielding the written word is courageous enough to speak truthfully to those in positions of power. Even with today’s various digital versions of the writing device, the impact of words — delivered skillfully to a reader’s thoughts — remains long after the bloodstains of slayers and lesser humans have dried and been washed away.
Nevadan John L. Smith is just such a talented writer. And it’s why the Reynolds School of Journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno, is honoring the longtime journalist and author of several books as the 2025 Robert Laxalt Distinguished Writer. After receiving the award, Smith will deliver a lecture, “The Fight to Tell the Nevada Story,” at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 7, in the Wells Fargo Auditorium in the Mathewson-IGT Knowledge Center on campus. The event is free and registration is required on the event page.
He paid a price for speaking truth to power
John L. Smith was born in 1960 in Henderson, Nevada, with family roots that date back to the 1860s. His first newspaper byline appeared when he was 19, and he went on to become a legendary 35-year Las Vegas newspaper columnist, investigative reporter and author of more than 20 books, achievements that also landed him in both the Nevada Newspaper and Nevada Writers halls of fame.
Fame, though, in Smith’s case was accompanied by a loss of fortune. A price was paid for speaking uncomfortable truths to two of Las Vegas’ titans of gambling power: Steve Wynn and Sheldon Adelson. Both billionaires sued and twice bankrupted the intrepid columnist, who said in his letter of resignation from the Las Vegas Review-Journal: “In Las Vegas, a quintessential company town, it’s the blowhard billionaires and their political toadies who are worth punching. And if you don’t have the freedom to call the community’s heavyweights to account, then that ‘commentary’ tag isn’t worth the paper on which it’s printed.”…