From Our Archive
Feb. 23, 2001
Scripps Howard Foundation announces National Journalism Award winners
CINCINNATI -- The Scripps Howard
Foundation today announced the winners of its National
Journalism Awards, a competition open to all news
organizations in the United States and honoring work done in
2000.
The awards recognize excellence in several
categories including editorial writing, human interest
writing, environmental and public service reporting,
business/economics reporting, commentary, photojournalism,
electronic journalism, college cartooning, Internet reporting
and editorial cartooning.
One of the awards recognizes
distinguished service to literacy and another recognizes
distinguished service to the First Amendment.
Cash
awards totaling $50,000 will be presented April 6 during a
banquet at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.
"The entries in this year's National Journalism Awards
competition were exceptionally strong," said Judith G. Clabes,
president and chief executive officer of the Scripps Howard
Foundation. "The hard work and dedication of these
extraordinary journalists serve as a beacon to all of us who
aspire to make a difference in the world in which we live."
Kenneth W. Lowe, president and chief executive officer
of The E.W. Scripps Company, praised the winners of the
competition.
"The National Journalism Awards give us
an opportunity each year to recognize the remarkable
accomplishments of some of America's best journalists," Lowe
said. "The quality of work we saw this year reaffirms my
strong belief that journalists play an important role as
watchdogs, storytellers and observers of the human condition."
The winners are:
EDITORIAL
WRITING
Debra Decker, The Dallas Morning News. Decker
will receive $2,500 and the Walker Stone Award trophy.
Decker won for a series of editorials addressing
problems with the death penalty and indigent defense system in
Texas. Judges said, "(Decker) breaks down a complex subject
into manageable issues and offers real solutions."
Finalist : Antero Pietila, The Baltimore
Sun.
COMMENTARY
Dennis Roddy, Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette. Roddy will receive $2,500 and a trophy.
Roddy won for a selection of his general interest
columns. Judges said, "Whether writing about abortion, race or
the news of the day, he speaks clearly instead of shouting and
encourages us to join him in thinking how we can best get
through the challenges of the day."
Finalist : Tracey O'Shaughnessy,
Waterbury (Conn.) Republican-American.
HUMAN
INTEREST WRITING
Tom Hallman Jr., The Oregonian,
Portland, Ore. Hallman will receive $2,500 and the Ernie Pyle
Award trophy.
Hallman won for a series of
human-interest stories, including a four-part report, "The Boy
Behind the Mask," about a horribly deformed 15-year-old's
decision to risk dangerous surgery to give him a more normal
life. Judges said, "Tom Hallman writes with color and grace.
His heart is apparent in every
sentence."
Finalist : Charlie LeDuff, The
New York Times.
WEB REPORTING
MTVi News, New
York. MTVi News will receive $2,500 and a trophy.
MTVi
News won for its series "Playing With Fire: The Untold Story
of Woodstock 99." The series traced the roots of the
concert-ending riot back to problems that arose during
planning stages for the event. Judge said, "We chose 'Playing
With Fire' because it is an example of skilled reporting that
is greatly enhanced by the fact that it is online."
Finalists : Online NewsHour with Jim
Lehrer, Arlington, Va.; Los Angeles Times.
ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTING - Over 100,000
circulation
Michael Grunwald, The Washington Post. Grunwald
will receive $2,500 and the Edward J. Meeman Award trophy.
Grunwald won for two series of articles - "Rivers of
No Return" and "Engineers of Power" - that exposed a number of
problems in the management of the Army Corps of Engineers.
Judges said, "Grunwald shows through colorful anecdote and
accumulated detail how (the Army Corps of Engineers) agenda
not only has little or no regard for environmental needs, but
often runs directly counter to them."
Finalists : Todd Hartman, Rocky Mountain
News, Denver; Susan Q. Stranahan and Larry King, The
Philadelphia Inquirer.
ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTING
- Under 100,000 circulation
Sherry Devlin, Missoulian,
Missoula, Mont. Devlin will receive $2,500 and the Edward J.
Meeman Award trophy.
Devlin won for her series, "The
Big Burn of 1910," that provided historical context for
Western wildfires as natural and environmentally beneficial
events. Judges said, "Sherry Devlin's gripping two-part series
combines the best features of narrative writing and
explanatory journalism."
Finalists : Ben
Raines, Mobile (Ala.) Register; Kevin Wiatrowski, The Sun
News, Myrtle Beach, S.C.
EDITORIAL
CARTOONING
James Casciari, Press Journal, Vero Beach,
Fla. Casciari will receive $2,500 and a trophy.
Casciari won for a selection of cartoons commenting on
a variety of issues, including the presidential election
standoff in Florida. Judges said: "Great cartoonists are not
only funny, but economical. Several of Mr. Casciari's cartoons
were all you needed to know about the subject."
Finalist : Jack Higgins, Chicago
Sun-Times.
DISTINGUISHED SERVICE TO
LITERACY
The Bakersfield Californian. The newspaper
will receive $2,500, the Charles E. Scripps Award trophy and a
$5,000 donation from the Scripps Howard Foundation to the
literacy group of its choice.
The Californian won for
its "Read for Life" project to fight illiteracy, particularly
among children. Judges said, "The staff and management of the
Californian mounted a determined 18-month assault on
illiteracy in Bakersfield."
Finalist :
The Sun, Bremerton, Wash.
DISTINGUISHED SERVICE TO
THE FIRST AMENDMENT
The Des Moines (Iowa) Register. The
newspaper will receive $2,500 and the Edward Willis Scripps
Award trophy.
The Register won for its persistence in
exercising the public's right to know and protecting the First
Amendment through a series of investigative reports, editorial
crusades and legal actions. Judges said, "The Des Moines
Register showed a consistent and sustained commitment to the
cause of a free press on a broad front of issues."
Finalist : Arkansas Democrat-Gazette,
Little Rock.
PHOTOJOURNALISM
Marc Andrew
Piscotty, Rocky Mountain News, Denver. Piscotty will receive
$2,500 and a trophy.
Piscotty won, in part, for his
work on a special section, "ThunderRidge: Real Life at a
Suburban High School," that chronicled high school life in
suburban Denver. Judges said, "Marc Piscotty combines a
wonderful sense of humanity with a superb photographer's eye.
He's a great young talent." Finalist :
Shirley Ware, Medina (Ohio) Gazette.
BUSINESS/ECONOMICS REPORTING
Doris Hajewski,
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Hajewski will receive $2,500 and
the William Brewster Styles Award trophy.
Hajewski won for
her series, "The Global Thread," an in-depth look at the
relationship between U.S. clothing retailers and workers in
Third World nations. Judges said, "It's an excellent example
of translating a difficult global topic in a way that makes
the average readers care and better understand their world."
Finalist : The business staff of The
Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk.
JOURNALISTIC EXCELLENCE
IN ELECTRONIC MEDIA - Small Market Radio
KCSD-FM, South
Dakota Public Radio, Sioux Falls. The radio station will
receive $2,500 and the Jack R. Howard Award
trophy.
KCSD won for its report, "German Prisoners of
War in South Dakota." Judges said, "The producers succeeded in
blending the voices of German prisoners and American farmers
to illustrate what is now the modern history of South Dakota."
Finalist : WOI-FM, Iowa State University,
Ames, Iowa.
JOURNALISTIC EXCELLENCE IN ELECTRONIC
MEDIA - Large Market Radio
Minnesota Public Radio, St.
Paul. Minnesota Public Radio will receive $2,500 and the Jack
R. Howard Award trophy.
Minnesota Public Radio won for
"Massacre at Cuska," a documentary that linked atrocities
committed by Serbian security forces and Serbia's leader,
Slobodan Milosevic. The program was produced by
"American RadioWorks" which is the documentary project of
Minnesota Public Radio and NPR News. Judges said, "The
powerful story is factual, straightforward, human and
chilling."
Finalist : Living on Earth
(National Public Radio), Cambridge, Mass.
JOURNALISTIC EXCELLENCE IN ELECTRONIC MEDIA -
Small Market TV/Cable
WSET-TV, Lynchburg, Va. WSET will
receive $2,500 and the Jack R. Howard Award trophy.
WSET won for "The Forbidden Family," a report on
Virginia's forced sterilization of the mentally handicapped,
and people falsely labeled as mentally handicapped, between
1920 and 1970. Judges said, "This is a small station that
found the time and resources to dig into the community's past
and expose the eugenics movement."
JOURNALISTIC
EXCELLENCE IN ELECTRONIC MEDIA - Large Market
TV/Cable
KHOU-TV, Houston. KHOU will receive $2,500 and the
Jack R. Howard Award trophy.
KHOU won for breaking the
national story that exposed and led to the recall of defective
Firestone tires used as original manufacturer's equipment on
millions of Ford Explorers. Judges said, "Local television
news is starving for examples of journalistic courage and
tenacity. This is such an example." Finalists
: WTHR-TV, Indianapolis; ABC News Nightline, Frontier
Dispatches Production Company, Londonderry, Vt.
COLLEGE CARTOONING
Charles M. Schulz
Award
Barry Deutsch, The Vanguard, Portland (Ore.) State
University. Deutsch will receive $2,500 and the Charles M.
Schulz Award trophy.
Deutsch won for a series of
socio-political cartoons. Judges said, "Barry Deutsch's work
was the strongest among the entries and the furthest along in
establishing its own voice." Finalists : Dan
Wheeler, The Daily Californian, University of California,
Berkeley; Carmen Cerra, Iowa State Daily, Iowa State
University, Ames.
PUBLIC SERVICE REPORTING -
Over 100,000 circulation
The Detroit News (Melvin Claxton,
Charles Hurt.) The Detroit News will receive $2,500 and the
Roy W. Howard Award trophy.
The Detroit News won for
its report, "Detroit Fire Department: Out of Service," which
revealed mismanagement and negligence on the part of fire
department and city officials. Judges said, "A classic work of
big-city reporting. The reporters thoroughly and meticulously
documented a stunning set of problems."
PUBLIC
SERVICE REPORTING - Under 100,000
circulation
Chronicle-Tribune, Marion, Ind. The newspaper
will receive $2,500 and the Roy W. Howard Award trophy.
The Chronicle-Tribune won for "Moment of Truth," a
120-page, 10-month comprehensive examination of local social
and economic problems. Judges said, "The 'Moment of Truth'
series showed that even small newspapers with scarce resources
can paint a big picture and present problems in ways that
encourage the community to seek solutions."
Finalists : The York (Pa.) Dispatch/Sunday
News; Gina Edwards, Naples (Fla.) Daily News.
Dedicated to excellence in journalism, the Scripps
Howard Foundation is a leader in industry efforts in
journalism education, scholarships, internships, literacy,
minority recruitment/development and First Amendment
causes.
Contact: Patty Cottingham, Scripps Howard Foundation, 513-977-3847, cottingham@scripps.com