Michael Graczyk

Michael Graczyk
Born1950 (age 73–74)
Occupation(s)Journalist, reporter
Years active1984–Present

Michael Graczyk (born 1950) is an American journalist.

He was formerly based in the Houston bureau of the Associated Press.[1] Graczyk officially retired from the AP at the end of July 2018, but continues covering executions and other news stories for the agency as a freelancer.[2]

During his career, Graczyk reported on a wide range of topics. However, he is most notable as the AP's designated representative to witness executions in Texas.[3][4] Since 1984, Graczyk has witnessed more than 450 executions, considered a macabre record for an American.[2][5][6][7][8]

  1. ^ Alsup, Dave (July 20, 2009). "Texas reporter's seen unrivaled number of U.S. executions". CNN. cnn.com. Retrieved October 22, 2009.
  2. ^ a b Dart, Tom (2018-08-05). "The reporter who has seen over 400 executions: 'The job is to tell the story'". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  3. ^ "Witness for the execution". BBC News. news.bbc.co.uk. June 23, 2000. Retrieved October 22, 2009.
  4. ^ Litman, Mysty (May 1, 2001). "An AP reporter's tally: witness to 200 executions". The News Media & the Law. 25 (2). Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press: 53. ISSN 0149-0737. OCLC 3562814. Retrieved October 22, 2009.
  5. ^ Pérez-Peña, Richard (October 21, 2009). "One Reporter's Lonely Beat, Witnessing Executions". The New York Times. pp. A1. Retrieved October 22, 2009.
  6. ^ King, Joyce (2002). Hate crime: the story of a dragging in Jasper, Texas (First ed.). New York: Pantheon Books. pp. 206. ISBN 978-0-375-42132-7. OCLC 48517167. Retrieved October 22, 2009. Mike Graczyk.
  7. ^ "Media Witness List". Texas Department of Criminal Justice. (tdcj.state.tx.us). October 28, 2011. Retrieved November 8, 2011.
  8. ^ Using the TDCJ list, a "CTRL-F" search on Graczyk will provide a count of the number of times his name appears; since it appears only once per executed inmate listed, it can serve as an unofficial count of the number of executions he has witnessed.