Elizabethtown– Veteran TV reporter Lawrence Smith is the recipient of the Integrity Award for Coverage of Faith Issues, an honor bestowed by the Kentucky Baptist Convention.

Smith, reporter with WDRB TV in Louisville, has worked for several television news stations during his long career, including with those in Houston, Knoxville, Tenn., and Lexington, Ky.

KBC Executive Director Paul Chitwood awarded the prize to Smith at the Annual Meeting of Kentucky Baptists at Severns Valley Baptist Church in Elizabethtown.

“Our selection committee was impressed by the thorough, thoughtful coverage Smith provided this year,” Chitwood said. “His portrayal of news events was fair, accurate and well-balanced.”

KBC Communications Director Roger Alford, a former correspondent for The Associated Press, nominated Smith for the award.

Alford said Smith understands the impact religion has on the lives of everyday Kentuckians, and he was particularly impressed with the reporter’s coverage of the religious liberty aspects of the Kim Davis story.

Davis is the Rowan County clerk who refused to sign her name to same-sex marriage license on the belief that doing so would violate her conscience and religious convictions.

“To say that I am surprised to receive this award is an understatement,” Smith said. “The Kim Davis story is an important one, embodying the clash of worldviews, the debate over church and state, and the Christian’s role in civil government.

“I am truly humbled that the KBC believes I told the story well,” he said.

Smith and his wife, Garnetta, are members of Highview Baptist Church in Louisville, where he has served as a deacon, usher and community group leader. Smith has a broadcasting degree from Eastern Kentucky University and studied theology at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville. (KBC)