[3] Caro Brown began working for the Alice Daily Echo in 1947,[4] initially as a proofreader,[3] and later as a columnist, society editor, and courthouse reporter.
He had fallen under scrutiny for influencing the outcome of the 1948 Democratic Senate primary in favor of Lyndon Johnson,[5] and for a series of local political campaigns which turned violent in 1952.
[3][4] Members of the Texas Rangers law enforcement agency advised her that she was at risk of violence from Parr's supporters – a reporter named Bill Mason had previously been killed while conducting similar investigations – and Brown began carrying a handgun in her car for self-defense.
[2][3] The committee's decision read: For a series of news stories dealing with the successful attack on one-man political rule in neighboring Duval County, written under unusual pressure both of edition time and difficult, even dangerous, circumstances.
Mrs. Brown dug into the facts behind the dramatic daily events, as well, and obtained her stories in spite of the bitterest political opposition, showing professional skill and courage.