Helen Thomas has died at the age of 92 after a long illness. Thomas was a native Detroiter and a graduate of Wayne State University. As a White House correspondent, she covered presidents from John F. Kennedy to Barack Obama. Thomas is known for breaking down numerous barriers in her field. She became the National Press Club's first female officer, as well as the first woman to be named White House bureau chief of a major wire service, the first woman to be admitted to the Gridiron Club, the first woman to serve as president of the White House Correspondents' Association and the recipient of multiple lifetime achievement awards. Outgoing WSU President Allan D. Gilmour called Thomas the school's "most notable alumni" in a statement released by the university. "Her courage, intellect, tenacity and wit made her a force to be reckoned with and an icon in journalism," said Gilmour. "The controversy in her final years does not overshadow her accomplishments over a long and distinguished career in the profession she loved."

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http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130720/NATION/307200032
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http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/viewart/20130720/NEWS01/307200014/Helen-Thomas-veteran-White-House-reporter-dies-92