ONLINE
Online investigation reporting for digital website on a national issue
First Place
“Health Care’s Colossus”
Staff
STAT
Judges’ comments: StatNews detailed how UnitedHealth Group, the nation’s largest health insurer, paid doctors more to diagnose chronic conditions, ensuring the highest possible reimbursements from the government. It showed patients finding diagnoses on their records that their doctors had never mentioned. The stories outlined how the company’s tactics “have transformed medicine in communities across the country into an assembly line that treats millions of patients as products to be monetized.” The stories used court records, the company’s medical coding document, and scores of interviews with doctors, patients and health policy experts to reveal that United Health Group “squeezed potentially tens of billions of extra dollars from taxpayers over the past decade.” Extraordinary work, thoroughly reported and clearly written.
Second Place
“At the Border in 2024”
Lillian Perlmutter
Truthdig
Third Place
“The Gutting of the Eighth Amendment”
Nicole Einbinder, Hannah Beckler and Esther Kaplan
Business Insider
Online investigation reporting for digital website on a local issue
First Place
“Denied: Alabama’s Broken Parole System”
Ivana Hrynkiw
AL.com
Judges’ comments: Ivana Hrynkiw’s investigative reporting exposed the Alabama parole board’s systemic denial of releases, even for rehabilitated individuals. Her work sparked bipartisan outrage, increased public scrutiny, and led to a measurable rise in paroles — 250 more people were released in 2024 than the previous year. Through powerful storytelling and data-driven analysis, she revealed how the state profited from prison labor while denying parole. Her reporting led to rare, rapid reforms without a court order, proving the power of journalism to drive change.
Second Place
“The Tenant Trap”
Maya Dukmasova, Alejandra Cancino, Forest Greg and Alex Richards
Injustice Watch
Third Place
“Uncovering Abuse at Greater Grace Church”
Jessica Calefati, Julie Scharper and Justin Fenton
The Baltimore Banner
Online investigative reporting for digital partnerships with other news outlets
First Place and BEST IN SHOW
“Lethal Restraint”
Staffs of AP, PBS Frontline and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism
Judges’ comments: The Associated Press hit this out of the park, revealing how police tactics used to avoid lethal force result in a death sentence for some of the most vulnerable citizens — many in the midst of a mental health crisis and often posing zero threat — at the hands of officers who, at best, are poorly trained and at worst, full of vengeance and loathfulness. In addition to a haunting, presentation that incorporated the faces of victims and body-camera footage, the writing was absolutely singular and memorable. Three years of digging and persistence on the part of these reporters paid off with measurable results, including new use-of-force guidelines issued by the widely respected Police Executive Research Forum.
Second Place
“Baltimore’s Overdose Crisis”
Alissa Zhu, Jessica Gallagher and Nick Thieme
The Baltimore Banner
Third Place
“The Brutality of Sugar”
Qadri Inzamam and Megha Rajagopalan
The Fuller Project and The New York Times
Online beat reporting
First Place
“Texas Ballot Secrecy”
Natalia Contreras, Karen Brooks Harper, William Melhado
Votebeat and The Texas Tribune
Judges’ comments: This exhaustive review of Texas voting records showed that ballot secrecy could crumble under the close scrutiny of any groups digging deeply into the vote. The work of Votebeat and Texas Tribune sparked the Texas Secretary of State’s office to react and try to fix the issue. Solid, deep and “shoe leather” journalism.
Second Place
“A Flood of Civil Rights and Customer Abuses at Insurer Globe Life”
Susan Antilla
Business Insider
Third Place
Jon Marcus
The Hechinger Report
Online beat reporting health and science
First Place
“Guardians of the Deep”
Nathan Eagle, April Estrellon and Kawika Lopez
Honolulu Civil Beat
Judges’ comments: Nathan Eagle turns readers into explorers, taking them along on an oceanic expedition to remote Hawaiian islands to try to solve the mystery of a just discovered “devil weed” threatening coral reefs in the Pacific. They’re with him, too, as scientists discover the re-emergence of a small island wiped away by a hurricane and he points out how the political tides will affect environmental research and protections. With his writing, photos and videos, he shares the thrill, discoveries and importance of environmental/scientific research.
Second Place
“The Powerful Forces Outside the Doctor’s Office Constraining Health Care for Women in America”
Rachana Pradhan, Hannah Recht and Holly Hacker
KFF Health News
Third Place
“A Pandemic Threat: How the US Lost Control of Bird Flu”
Amy Maxmen and Nathan Payne
KFF Health News
Online beat reporting government and political coverage
First Place
“Fact Checking Trump’s Claims on Immigration”
Robert Farley, Catalina Jaramillo, D’Angelo Gore and Lori Robertson
FactCheck.org
Judges’ comments: Factcheck.org performed a valuable service for voters by combing through Donald Trump’s claims about America’s immigration problems — false or unsubstantiated claims that would form the basis of his policies — and providing correct information. The reporting is thorough, fair and helpful and deserves commendation.
Second Place
“The Only Hospital in Town”
Brett Kelman and Samantha Liss
KFF Health News
Third Place
Emily Hopkins
Mirror Indy
Online breaking news
First Place
“Key Bridge Collapse”
The Baltimore Banner staff
The Baltimore Banner
Judges’ comments: In these days of resource-starved newsrooms, the response by digital news site Baltimore Banner to the bridge collapse in March 2024 was nothing short of stunning. A Banner reporter was awakened by a call from a fire department source and the Banner’s news and technical staffs were mobilized. Reporters got to the bridge as families of those missing were showing up. The digital site’s response to major breaking local and national news was classic solid journalism and testimony to the excellent work of a digital news site.
Second Place
“IVF in Alabama”
Staff of AL.com
AL.com
No third-placed award given.
News video up to three minutes
First place
“Tattoo Artists After Cancer”
Vickie Connor
Advance Local dba The Oregonian/OregonLive
Judges’ comments: With sensitivity, context and strong visuals, this video covered an unfamiliar angle to an important health care issue by taking viewers through the process of using tattooing to create a 3-D areolas for breast cancer survivors.
Second place
“Amazing Views of Historic USS New Jersey Battleship While in Dry Dock for Maintenance”
Andre Malok
NJ Advance Media
Third place
“Catalyst Bite: Chloe Flowers”
LinkedIn News staff
LinkedIn News
News video 3 to 10 minutes
First Place
“Bigfoot Hunters”
Teresa Mahoney and Samantha Swindler
Advance Local dba The Oregonian/OregonLive
Judges’ comments: A video about a group of guys hunting for Bigfoot sounds like the premise of a bad horror movie. But in the hands of the Oregonian’s talented video team, this premise was the beginning of a thoughtful, emotional story. Beautifully filmed and told in a compelling documentary style, this narrative film took you into the Pacific Northwest woods and used the legend of Bigfoot to explore how people search for meaning in their lives and the often surprising ways in which they find it.
Second Place
“Red Bank Does the Red Bank Boogie”
Brian Donohue
Red Bank Green
Third Place
“Rare Toads or Clean Energy? An Environmental Law Fight in Nevada”
Andrew Satter, Josh Block and Daniel Moore
Bloomberg Industry Group
News video 10 to 30 minutes
First Place
“Darwin’s War”
Scripps News Staff
Scripps News
Judges’ comments: What does war in the age of AI look like? Ukraine’s military granted correspondent Jason Bellini and Scripps News an unprecedented level of access to an FPV drone team fighting Russians from an off-the-grid location in one of the deadliest parts of the frontline, where they produced this groundbreaking video that brings viewers into the harrowing technological world of modern combat.
Second Place
“Finding Manoomin: A Search for the Spirit of Wild Rice”
MPR News Staff
MPR News
Third Place
“Searching for His Mom After the Storm”
Fraser Jones and staff
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Digital presentation of a single news topic
First Place
“How Elderly Dementia Patients are Unwittingly Fueling Political Campaigns”
CNN Staff
CNN Worldwide
Judges’ comments: Timely and important angle. Political campaigns that prey on those suffering with dementia rated high on the outrage meter. Well documented and creatively presented.
Second Place
“The Lakewood Church Shooter had Encounters with More than 50 Officers. Nobody Stopped Her”
Caroline Ghisolfi, Amelia Winger and Matt deGrood
Houston Chronicle
Third Place
“Fractured”
Staff of Carnegie-Knight News21
Carnegie-Knight News21
Digital presentation of a single features topic
First Place
“Home of the Brave”
Long Lead staff
Long Lead
Judges’ comments: This bold and immersive presentation highlights the staggering crisis of veteran homelessness. Its striking opening and smooth user experience ensure that the story is both compelling and respectful, keeping the dignity of the veterans at the forefront. Both visually and narratively, it makes the issue impossible to ignore.
Second Place
“Unsafe Online”
Olivia Carville and Cecilia D’Anastasio
Bloomberg
Third Place
“Life and Loss in Dallas”
Dallas Morning News Staff
Dallas Morning News
Digital social media
First Place
“The Death Penalty in 2024”
The Marshall Project staff
The Marshall Project
Judges’ comments: The team did an admirable job of finding threads from their deep reporting that would have emotional resonance on social media. The work felt native to teach platform and was compelling enough to drive people to the more extensive work that was part of the project.
Second Place
“Solar Eclipse”
Dallas Morning News Staff
Dallas Morning News
Third Place
“N.J.’s Autism Therapy Crisis”
Lauren Raposa, Natalie Paterson and Susan K. Livio
NJ Advance Media
Digital civic/political affairs podcast
First Place
“NPR’s Embedded: Supermajority”
Meribah Knight, Adelina Lancianese, Ariana Lee, Dan Girma, Alex Kotlowitz and Katie Simon
NPR’s Embedded and Nashville Public Radio
Judges’ comments: This series, following a trio of Nashville women on their political evolution following a school shooting, embodies the category perfectly. Great job covering events in real time from inside the Tennessee state house while telling the story. Excellent sound from all of the principals enhanced the coverage throughout.
Second Place
“Long Shadow: In Guns We Trust”
Staff of Long Lead, The Trace, Campside Media and PRX
Third Place
“Bad Watchdog Season 2”
Maren Machles, Freddy Martinez and Nick Schwellenbach
Project On Government Oversight
Digital narrative podcast
First Place
“Tested”
Staff of NPR’s Embedded, CBC and Bucket of Eels
NPR’s Embedded, CBC and Bucket of Eels
Judges’ comments: An outstanding, well-narrated effort with an impressive cross-section of interviews that brought a really important story to life about women’s sports. It grabbed our attention quickly and kept it throughout.
Second Place
“Breakdown: Turning Anguish Into Action”
Maine Public Radio Staff
Maine Public Radio
Third Place
“Lost Patients”
Will James, Sydney Brownstone and Esmy Jimenez
KUOW Public Radio and The Seattle Times
Digital narrative podcast focused on a single incident, person or time
First Place
“Last Seen, Postmortem: The Stolen Bodies of Harvard”
Ally Jarmanning and Staff of WBUR
WBUR
Judges’ comments: Jumping off from an incredibly timely news event, Ally Jarmanning dives deep into the bizarre underground of human remains collecting. The writing was riveting. The audio puts the listener in place. The sheer amount of data, miles, Facebook groups and interesting interview subjects was mindblowing and left the judges genuinely concerned (though well informed) about where our bodies might end up.
Second Place
“Radioactive: The Karen Silkwood Mystery”
ABC Audio
ABC News
Third Place
“My Cousin Augie”
Mary Spicuzza, Bill Schulz and Gina Barton
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Digital information podcast
First Place
“Off the Radar”
Emily Gracey, Jay Mishkin and Brian Pietrus
Sinclair Broadcast Group
Judges’ comments: Emily Gracey has brightly transformed the science of weather from larger-than-life scale to very human-size — filling her Off the Radar episodes wIth relevance, accessible experts, enthusiasm and delightful surprises (yes, a baseball scientist talking about the effects of weather conditions on the national pastime!). Kudos for making meteorology so engaging.
Second Place
Click Here podcast
Click Here team at Recorded Future News
Third Place
“Imperfect Paradise: Lions, Coyotes and Bears”
Imperfect Paradise Staff
LAist Studios
Digital criminal justice and/or crime podcast
First Place
“Beyond All Repair”
Amory Sivertson and the staffs of WBUR and ZSP Media
WBUR and ZSP Media
Judges’ comments: From the tension-laced voicemails in the opening scene to the meticulous sound design and evocative music, every episode of WBUR’s gripping, well-reported cold case podcast kept you eagerly awaiting the next reveal. It was top-of-class in this strong category.
Second Place
“In the Shadow of Princeton”
Kevin Shea and Rebecca Everett
NJ Advance Media
Third Place
“Where Secrets Go To Die”
John Wisely, Darcie Moran and Robin Chan
Detroit Free Press
Digital sports podcast
First Place
“The Deal with Alex Rodriguez and Jason Kelly”
Bloomberg staff
Bloomberg
Judges’ comments: Good interplay between the hosts and their interview with Serena Williams was a nice mix of conversation about what she is doing now and what made her great during her tennis career.
Second Place
“PA High School Football Report”
Brian Linder, Eric Epler, Dan Sostek and Megan Lavey-Heaton
PA Media Group
No third-place award given
Digital conversational podcast
First Place
“She Didn’t Want to Die. But She Didn’t Want to Suffer”
Ryan Levi and Dan Gorenstein
Tradeoffs
Judges’ comments: A very strong choice of interview on a very difficult and nuanced topic. It’s clear the interviewee has many, often conflicting, feelings on Medical Aid in Dying and Steven Petrow does a good job asking questions and follow ups that bring out the nuance. It’s a multi-faceted topic and interviewee handled with care.
Second Place
“The Broadside”
Anisa Khalifa and Jerad Walker
WUNC
Third Place
“Everyday Better with Leah Smart”
LinkedIn News staff
LinkedIn News
Digital investigative podcast
First Place
“Hush”
Leah Sottile, Ryan Haas and Anna Griffin
OPB
Judges’ comments: Hush takes one true crime story and uses as a springboard to examine the larger justice system in Oregon and how deeply biases can taint investigations. It’s well reported, strongly told and cleanly presented.
Second Place
“The Parole Room”
Ben Austen and Bill Healy
Audible
No third-place award given
Digital newsletter
First Place
“My Group Chat”
Daysi Calavia-Robertson
NJ Advance Media
Judges’ comments: Written in young prose this newsletter is doing the work to bring new readers to the news and serve them the content they want and deserve. It’s no mean feat to build a community today, Daysi Calavia-Robertson does this, she does it with flair and (this is key) without talking down to anyone. She meets her audience where they are, gives them what they need, makes them laugh, and brings them into the fold. Sublime.
Second Place
“City Council Notebook”
Malachi Barrett
BridgeDetroit
Third place
“Long Lead Presents: Depth Perception”
Mark Yarm, Parker Molloy and Heather Muse
Long Lead
Digital independent community/local news site
First Place
Cascadia Daily News
Cascadia Daily News staff
Judges’ comments: Filling the void where two fading legacy newspapers continue to shrink, the Cascadia Daily News provides a robust menu of local coverage including traditional news beats, restaurants, business, arts and quality photography. Written and edited with flair, the CDN is just the kind of online destination you’d want to visit first thing in the morning to get your local news fix with a cup of coffee.
Second Place
BridgeDetroit
BridgeDetroit staff
Third Place
Houston Landing
Houston Landing staff