HELENA — The halls of the Montana State Capitol have a new plaque honoring a man who walked through them for 22 legislative sessions and a span of seven governors.
The late Chuck Johnson, a Helena-based journalist, was honored on Friday in the Old Supreme Court chambers for providing the public with credible and fair stories.
Johnson was Montana's longest-serving statehouse reporter, working for outlets like the Associated Press, Lee Newspapers State Bureau, and the Great Falls Tribune Capitol Bureau in Helena.
After retiring in 2015, Johnson occasionally made political commentary but never stopped mentoring and teaching young journalists, like MTN's very own senior political reporter Jonathon Ambarian.
"He was a great friend, a great person to have gotten to work with, and a great person to know. I think it's incredible that he's being honored like this, and he's so worthy of being recognized. I'm pleased that he's being recognized in this way. Here at the capitol, I've always felt it never felt quite the same without him here. I'm glad that he'll be here permanently," said Ambarian.
Johnson passed away unexpectedly in 2023.
The plaque is in the hall next to the Old Supreme Court Chambers and includes a quote he always said: "It's really the public's right to know."
