A note of thanks from National Press Club President Emily Wilkins

To my fellow NPC members,

On this tremendous day, we got a resounding win for press freedom. 

Evan is coming home. 

Alsu is coming home. 

They should have never been detained in the first place. They did nothing more than their jobs — and journalism is not a crime. 

There is more work to do to prevent Americans from being taken hostage and used as pawns. There is more work to do to ensure journalists are more quickly declared wrongfully detained. There is more work to do to bring Austin Tice home. There is more work to do, and the Club will continue to be a leader in this fight. 

But today, we choose to celebrate. I hope to see many of you in person tomorrow at a very special Taco Night, on August 28 at the Awards Dinner where we will honor Alsu with the President's Award, and in the coming weeks and months ahead when we hope to welcome Evan and Alsu to the Club. They both have a long road of recovery ahead of them, and we will be there to help however we can. 

There are a number of people in our Press Club community who deserve special recognition today: 

First and foremost, a huge thank you to Bill McCarren, who has worked relentlessly to free Evan and Alsu from the start. Bill has coordinated and worked closely with the families of both Evan and Alsu, as well as The Wall Street Journal and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Few work as hard as Bill does, and he has helped the Club become the press freedom leader it is today.

The Press Freedom Team has also been active in keeping Evan and Alsu in the spotlight. Thank you to Chair Rachel Oswald and co-chairs Ferdous “Danny” Al-Faruque and Zach Cohen. Key to the team’s efforts is the Journalism Institute, especially Executive Director Beth Francesco, who has worked continuously to support press freedom initiatives.  

Past NPC President Eileen Drage O’Reilly used her presidency to advocate fiercely for Evan and Alsu, honoring Evan with our 2023 Aubuchon Award, the Club’s highest honor for Press Freedom. 

The Press Freedom Advisory Council coordinates efforts across the Club and is the engine behind the Club’s statements on Evan and Alsu. Thank you to Mike Balsamo, Didier Saugy, Alex Faufoglu, Steve Reilly, Cary O’Reilly, Past President Gil Klein, Elvina Nawaguna, Kate Helster, Ryan Howell, and Rachel, Bill, Beth and Eileen. 

And thank you to each one of you. Without our members, none of what the Club does is possible. Whether you posted on social media about Evan and Alsu, wore their buttons, did the read-a-thon or simply spoke to the people in your lives about them, you each own a part of this. Thank you, thank you, thank you. 

Emily