Hynes, who served as city editor from 2000 to 2012, guided the newspaper through pivotal moments including the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks, the Yucca Mountain project, and the Great Recession. After a brief tenure in corporate communications, she returned to the newsroom in 2019 to contribute to award-winning investigative coverage of the Alpine Motel fire and the COVID-19 pandemic. Review-Journal Executive Editor Glenn Cook credited her with setting the gold standard for public-service journalism and noted her influence on generations of reporters who have since moved to national outlets like The Wall Street Journal and ProPublica.

Joining Hynes in the 2026 class is Ron Kantowski, a veteran sports columnist known for his humor and ability to capture the human side of Las Vegas athletics. The inductee list also includes Nevada Independent reporter Howard Stutz and longtime Las Vegas Sun cartoonist Mike Smith. The four journalists will be formally honored during a ceremony at the Springs Preserve on September 26, 2026.