O B I T U A R Y
Richard Gaines, Gloucester Journalist
Richard Gaines in his element. Gaines in the foreground was reporting on a fishermen’s demonstration in Washington, DC. Fishermen were demonstrating against federal regulations which were driving them out of business. Gaines was an able and effective advocate for the rights of fishermen in New England and elsewhere. © Photo by Sam Murfitt
Veteran Gloucester journalist Richard Gaines was found dead in his swimmimg pool June 9, he was 69. The cause of death is believed to be a heart attack. He was the only one at home at the time.
Gaines was remembered by state and local officials—and especially by fishermen and advocates—for his persistent and expansive coverage of fishery issues. A 40-year veteran journalist Gaines took on a waterfront beat for the Gloucester Times in 2008. His knowledge of the industry and tough questions for regulators and government agencies focused light on areas where change was needed and as a result eventually was made.
Gaines was the professional, thorough researcher whose mastery of whatever topic he was working on made him the bane of the spin doctors. He was respected for his clear, concise, informed and no pulled punches writing that helped bring change to an industry desperately in need of it.
“It’s like a light has been extinguished—a light that always kept looking for the truth,” attorney and former New Bedford Mayor Scott W. Lang said. “He not only was a great investigative journalist, but he could present what he had found in a way that changed and forged public opinion.”
“Richard had an unusual ability to separate right from wrong,” said Brian Rothschild, a noted marine scientist and charter professor of marine science and technology at UMass-Dartmouth. “He could explain the differences. He could articulate the ethical and moral issues that impeded progress, (and) he did all of this with grace and skill. Richard’s skill magnifies the vacuum created by his passing.”
Gaines, grew up in Newburgh, N.Y. but his family were regular summer visitors to Gloucester. He honed his journalism skills as Statehouse reporter with United Press International in the 1960s and ‘70s. A graduate of Trinity College in Hartford, Conn., he did graduate work at Georgetown University. He then moved on to serve as political writer and later as editor-in-chief at The Boston Phoenix from 1979 through 1989, when, under his leadership, the alternative publication carved out a niche in investigative political coverage, placing as a runner up for a Pulitzer Prize for national reporting.
In 1990 he turned to political consulting, working on a U.S. Senate run by James Rappaport. He lived for a time in Florida where he worked on a congressional campaign before returning to the Boston area. Gaines joined the Gloucester Times staff in 2002, covering City Hall and political races, including for state offices, Congress and U.S. Senate.
“He was always an insightful and penetrating questioner,” said Salem Congressman John Tierney, who drew pointed questions from Gaines over the years, yet worked well with him in getting out word about recent fishery-related legislation. “He was just a good guy with a good heart and a good soul.”
Gaines, a 40 year veteran journalist, seemed to find a new level of journalistic passion in 2008, when he embraced the opportunity to cover the harborfront and the commercial fishing industry on a daily basis for the Gloucester Times.
From the delayed U.S. Coast Guard response to the fishing boat Patriot in January 2009, to the uncovering of wrongdoing on the part of NOAA law enforcement and the federal-led push for a catch share management system that has brought about a recognized “economic disaster” in New England’s groundfishery, he wrote proudly about Gloucester as a “co-capital of fishing nation” in addition to being America’s oldest seaport. Gaines gave voice to fishermen and their dealings with federal regulators.
“I received calls from a number of fishermen whose hearts were broken at the news that a family member had passed,” state Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante said Monday. The push by her and state Sen. Bruce Tarr for fishery reforms was well chronicled by Gaines from the start, and soon sparked national calls for changes within NOAA and an Inspector General’s investigation into NOAA enforcement.
“My hope,” Ferrante added Monday, “is that Richard will be remembered as a generous mentor who taught so many of us to look beyond the smoke and mirrors of politics and into the authenticity of individuals and their communities’ collective souls.
“Richard’s legacy should be about putting a spotlight on rights and wrongs and of encouraging and giving others the courage to do the same, whether they be bureaucrats, politicians, young aspiring writers — or just simply fishermen,” she said. “I will truly miss Richard, the self-righteous warrior who would mount his white horse of social justice not with the sword but with the pen trying to keep all things equal and honest.”
“Richard embodied a passion for robust local coverage and his daily stories will be deeply missed,” state Attorney General Martha Coakley said Monday in sending her condolences to Gaines’ family and to the Times. “His outstanding, in-depth reporting on the fishing industry will serve as a lasting contribution to the Gloucester community, the commonwealth, and the nation.”
In September 2010, Gaines and the Times were honored with the Offshore Mariners’ Wives “Friends of the Fishermen” awards, presented annually in conjunction with that city’s Blessing of the Fleet. It marked the first time that the award — whose past winners included then-Mayor Lang and Congressman Barney Frank — had ever gone to a journalist, and Gaines, who shunned awards and any recognition, was clearly touched.
“I consider this award the highest and most gratifying in my 42 years of scribbling, trying to decipher what’s happening to our civilization and giving readers a series of stories that can be read as a narrative to help them decide what to do about it,” he told about 100 in New Bedford’s State Fish Pier that day. “This is my Pulitzer Prize — and I will cherish it always.
“We row as best we can against that tide,” Gaines said, referring to the fishing industry and the Times’ coverage of it. “Inspired by Gloucester’s great fisherman, Howard Blackburn, we will row until the oars rot away — then we’ll paddle with our hands.”