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Joel Thornton, longtime copy chief at The Dallas Morning News and a champion of the craft of editing, died April 5, 2025, in Dallas. He was 62. The cause was primary progressive aphasia, a type of early-onset dementia — a particularly cruel disease for someone whose life was built around words.
Joel was born Sept. 21, 1962, in Lincoln, Nebraska, and he graduated from Lincoln High School. His Nebraska roots fostered a lifelong love of Cornhuskers football, while his time at the University of Kansas — where he graduated in 1984 from the William Allen White School of Journalism — cemented an equally fierce devotion to Jayhawks basketball.
Joel’s journalism career began at the Lexington Herald-Leader, but after two years, he joined The Dallas Morning News, where he would remain for the next three decades. He worked at 508 Young St. for 31 years, including 15 as copy chief. Joel was not only one of the best editors in the business — scrupulously fair, calm under pressure, and trusted by his team — but also a force for newsroom culture and quality of life. He helped lead the charge for a four-day work week for the news and copy desks, a change that benefited countless colleagues.
Despite working nights, Joel always made time for his family. He rose early to spend mornings with his wife, Melissa, and their three children — Cammy, Cara, and Cade. He never missed a bedtime call after the first edition deadline. His colleagues remember his quiet steadiness, dry wit, and generous mentorship. He made people better — at writing, editing, and simply being human.
Joel is survived by Melissa and their children; his mother, Rosemary Thornton; siblings Jeff (Karen), Jay (Crystal), and Jennifer Thornton-Kolbe (Charles); and brothers-in-law Rob (Shanna) and Tim Watson (Joanna). He also leaves behind 16 nieces and nephews. On April 25, friends, family, and many of Joel’s former colleagues gathered in Dallas to celebrate his life, impact and enduring legacy.
To honor that legacy, we are creating the Joel Thornton Journalism Scholarship/Award at his beloved alma mater, the University of Kansas. Our goal is to build a sustainable endowed fund that ensures its longevity and continued support, allowing it to grow and provide this award in perpetuity. This fund will support aspiring journalists—those who, like Joel, care deeply about accuracy, integrity, and lifting up others through their work.
If Joel ever saved you from a mistake, wrote a great headline for your story, taught you something, made you laugh, or shared his Pringles with you, please consider giving in his memory. Together, we can help future journalists carry forward the values Joel lived every day.