 However, when Shipp was awarded the Pulitzer, Butts led his congregation in a standing ovation from the pulpit.From 1998 to 2000, Shipp served as the ombudsman at the "Washington Post", which had one of the few and perhaps the most independent of such positions in the US news media.As the person responsible for discussing the "Post"s policies and editorial decisions, among the issues she discussed in her column were the murder of Jesse Dirkhising and the coverage of the candidates in the 2000 presidential election.