Dominic Gates
{{short description|Irish-American aerospace reporter}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Dominic Gates
| image =
| image_upright =
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_date = {{birth based on age as of date|65|2020|05|17}}
| birth_place = Dungannon, Northern Ireland
| nationality =
| citizenship =
| education =
| alma_mater = Queen's University, Belfast
| occupation = Journalist
| years_active = 1992–present
| era =
| employer = The Seattle Times
| organization =
| known_for = 2020 Pulitzer Prize in National Reporting co-recipient
| notable_works =
| spouse = Nina Shapiro
| children = 2
}}
Dominic Gates is an Irish-American aerospace journalist for The Seattle Times, former math teacher, and Pulitzer Prize winner. He has been assigned to cover Boeing for The Times since 2003. Gates was a co-recipient of the 2020 Pulitzer Prize in National Reporting alongside Steve Miletich, Mike Baker, and Lewis Kamb for their coverage of the Boeing 737 MAX crashes and investigations.
Early life
Gates was born in Dungannon, Northern Ireland, as one of six children.{{cite news |date=May 17, 2020 |title=Pulitzer prize for Dungannon-born journalist |url=https://ulsterherald.com/2020/05/17/pulitzer-prize-for-dungannon-born-journalist/ |work=Ulster Herald |access-date=October 1, 2020 |archive-date=November 30, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201130164641/https://ulsterherald.com/2020/05/17/pulitzer-prize-for-dungannon-born-journalist/ |url-status=dead }} He was educated at St Patrick's Academy in Dungannon and graduated with a mathematics degree from Queen's University, Belfast.{{cite news |last=Moriarty |first=Gerry |date=May 6, 2020 |title=Tyrone journalist wins Pulitzer for Boeing Max crashes coverage |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/business/media-and-marketing/tyrone-journalist-wins-pulitzer-for-boeing-max-crashes-coverage-1.4246697 |work=Irish Times |access-date=October 1, 2020}} Gates taught high school mathematics in Northern Ireland and Zimbabwe before relocating to the United States.{{cite news |last=Blatchford |first=Taylor |date=June 13, 2019 |title=Behind the Byline: Meet aerospace reporter Dominic Gates |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/inside-the-times/behind-the-byline-meet-aerospace-reporter-dominic-gates/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=October 1, 2020}}
Journalism career
While having no formal training in journalism, Gates contributed several articles to the magazine Fortnight on an unpaid basis.{{cite news |last=Canning |first=Margaret |date=May 7, 2020 |title=Ex-teacher from Co Tyrone Dominic Gates wins Pulitzer Prize |url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/northern-ireland/ex-teacher-from-co-tyrone-dominic-gates-wins-pulitzer-prize-39186581.html |work=Belfast Telegraph |access-date=October 1, 2020}} After moving to Seattle with his wife in 1992, he took on several freelancing assignments for various magazines and news organizations while continuing to teach mathematics.{{cite news |last=Fancher |first=Michael R. |date=June 17, 2007 |title=An unusual journey to the Boeing beat |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/inside-the-times/an-unusual-journey-to-the-boeing-beat/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=October 1, 2020}} Gates was hired by technology magazine The Industry Standard in 2000, but the magazine went out of business 18 months later.
Gates then joined The Seattle Times in 2003 as an aerospace reporter, covering the local Boeing beat. He covered the development and launch of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner project and later the Boeing 737 MAX program, including two fatal crashes and the subsequent grounding of the aircraft. He won critical acclaim for his investigation into the 737 MAX and its automated flight control system, which had been written prior to the second crash. Gates and Times colleagues Steve Miletich, Mike Baker, and Lewis Kamb were awarded the 2019 George Polk Award in Business Reporting, the 2020 Pulitzer Prize in National Reporting, and the 2020 Gerald Loeb Award for Beat Reporting for their coverage of the Boeing 737 MAX program.{{cite web |title=The 2020 Pulitzer Prize Winner in National Reporting: Dominic Gates, Steve Miletich, Mike Baker and Lewis Kamb of The Seattle Times |url=https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/dominic-gates-steve-miletich-mike-baker-and-lewis-kamb-seattle-times |publisher=The Pulitzer Prizes |access-date=October 1, 2020}}{{cite news |last=Harris |first=Roy J. Jr. |date=April 3, 2020 |title=Pulitzer preview: While journalists pursue today's story of a lifetime, a moment to recognize 2019's best work |url=https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2020/pulitzer-preview-while-journalists-pursue-todays-story-of-a-lifetime-a-moment-to-recognize-2019s-best-work/ |publisher=Poynter Institute |access-date=October 1, 2020}}{{Cite press release |title=Anderson School of Management announces 2020 Loeb Award winners in business journalism |url=https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/ucla-anderson-school-of-management-2020-loeb-award-winners |date=November 13, 2020 |access-date=November 13, 2020 |publisher=UCLA Anderson School of Management |last1=Trounson |first1=Rebecca}}
Personal life
Selected bibliography
- "Boeing's 737 MAX Crisis", The Seattle Times{{Cite web |title=Boeing's 737 MAX Crisis |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-737-max-crisis-2019-news-coverage/ |website=The Seattle Times |date=December 15, 2019 |access-date=November 14, 2020}} – award-winning series
:#"Flawed analysis, failed oversight: How Boeing, FAA certified the suspect 737 MAX flight control system", March 21, 2019{{Cite web |title=Flawed analysis, failed oversight: How Boeing, FAA certified the suspect 737 MAX flight control system |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/failed-certification-faa-missed-safety-issues-in-the-737-max-system-implicated-in-the-lion-air-crash/ |website=The Seattle Times |date=March 17, 2019 |access-date=November 14, 2020 |last=Gates |first=Dominic}}
:#"Engineers say Boeing pushed to limit safety testing in race to certify planes, including 737 MAX", May 5, 2019{{Cite web |title=Engineers say Boeing pushed to limit safety testing in race to certify planes, including 737 MAX |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/engineers-say-boeing-pushed-to-limit-safety-testing-in-race-to-certify-planes-including-737-max/ |website=The Seattle Times |date=May 5, 2019 |access-date=November 14, 2020 |last1=Gates |first1=Dominic |last2=Baker |first2=Mike}}
:#"The inside story of MCAS: How Boeing's 737 MAX system gained power and lost safeguards", June 24, 2019{{Cite web |title=The inside story of MCAS: How Boeing's 737 MAX system gained power and lost safeguards |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/times-watchdog/the-inside-story-of-mcas-how-boeings-737-max-system-gained-power-and-lost-safeguards/ |website=The Seattle Times |date=June 22, 2019 |access-date=November 14, 2020 |last1=Gates |first1=Dominic |last2=Baker |first2=Mike }}
:#"Boeing rejected 737 MAX safety upgrades before fatal crashes, whistleblower says", October 3, 2019{{Cite web |title=Boeing rejected 737 MAX safety upgrades before fatal crashes, whistleblower says |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/boeing-whistleblowers-complaint-says-737-max-safety-upgrades-were-rejected-over-cost/ |website=The Seattle Times |date=October 2, 2019 |access-date=November 14, 2020 |last1=Gates |first1=Dominic |last2=Miletich |first2=Steve |last3=Kamb |first3=Lewis}}
:#"Boeing pushed FAA to relax 737 MAX certification requirements for crew alerts", October 3, 2019{{Cite web |title=Boeing pushed FAA to relax 737 MAX certification requirements for crew alerts |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/boeing-pushed-faa-to-arelax-737-max-certification-requirements-for-crew-alerts/ |website=The Seattle Times |date=October 2, 2019 |access-date=November 14, 2020 |last1=Gates |first1=Dominic |last2=Miletich |first2=Steve |last3=Kamb |first3=Lewis}}
References
{{reflist}}
{{GeraldLoebAward Deadline and Beat Reporting}}
{{PulitzerPrize National Reporting}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gates, Dominic}}
Category:21st-century American journalists
Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:American investigative journalists
Category:Alumni of Queen's University Belfast
Category:Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting winners
Category:The Seattle Times people
Category:Journalists from Northern Ireland
Category:People from Dungannon
Category:Emigrants from Northern Ireland to the United States
Category:Schoolteachers from Washington (state)
Category:American mathematics educators
Category:Gerald Loeb Award winners for Deadline and Beat Reporting