FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, July 3, 2018
PRESS CONTACT: Dillon Lewis
Press@nlgja.org or 202-588-9888
WASHINGTON, DC – Today NLGJA – The Association of LGBTQ Journalists announces the recipients of its Excellence in Journalism Awards and recognizes exemplary work produced in 2017. The highest individual awards, NLGJA Journalist of the Year and Sarah Pettit Memorial Award for the LGBTQ Journalist of the Year, are awarded to Ronan Farrow and Diane Anderson-Minshall, respectively.
“I am blown away by the work that was created in 2017,” said NLGJA President Jen Christensen. “While it was difficult to select winners from such a talented pool of submissions, I am so proud that our panel of judges has recognized these award winners. These recipients have set the bar for coverage of our community and have given me hope for increasingly terrific LGBTQ coverage in the years to come.”
NLGJA’s Excellence in Journalism Awards were established in 1993 to foster, recognize and reward excellence in journalism on issues related to the LGBTQ community. In recent years, the program was expanded to over 30 categories and this year included the creation of awards for Excellence in Food Writing, Excellence in Queer People of Color (QPOC) Coverage and Excellence in Longform Journalism. The awards will be presented throughout the NLGJA National Convention, to be held September 6-9 in Palm Springs. For more information on the convention, visit www.nlgja.org/2018.
“I can think of no other journalist who had a bigger impact this year than Ronan Farrow,” said one award judge. “[He inspired] countless women and men to speak out against the predators who, for far too long, have been in great positions of power. Seeing the impact of his work, work that was not even welcome initially at his first media outlet, he continued to pursue the story, even at some risk to himself. In addition to the impact, the work is incredibly well-written, researched and reported, and he deserves recognition.”
“These are excellent stories,” said one judge about Anderson-Minshall’s work. “Great interviews, wonderful depth, elegant writing and incredible when you know that Diane also runs the show for the Advocate. I don’t know how she does it all.”
With generous support from the Gannett Foundation, the Al Neuharth Award for Innovation in Investigative Journalism is presented to Ken Schwencke for “Why America Fails at Gathering Hate Crime Statistics.”
The 2018 NLGJA Excellence in Journalism Awards are presented to:
Special Recognition Awards:
NLGJA Journalist of the Year Award
Ronan Farrow
Sarah Pettit Memorial Award for the LGBTQ Journalist of the Year
Diane Anderson-Minshall
The Al Neuharth Award for Innovation in Investigative Journalism
Ken Schwencke for “Documenting Hate”, ProPublica and the Documenting Hate Coalition
Print/Online Awards:
Excellence in Book Writing Award
Judy Wieder for “Random Events Tend To Cluster”, Lisa Hagan Books
Excellence in Feature Writing Award
Kathryn Joyce for “She Was an Ultraconservative Texas Christian. Then Kai Was Born and Everything Changed”, Splinter
Excellence in Feature Writing Award (Non-daily)
Alex Mohajer for “A Tale of Two Marches”, HuffPost
Excellence in Food Writing Award
Zach Stafford for “Burned Out: Hot Chicken Was the Prince Family Legacy — Then Nashville Transformed it Into an Icon, and Now Everybody Wants a Piece”, Eater.com
Excellence in Longform Journalism Award
Laura Rena Murray for “Trans, Teen and Homeless: On the Streets of New York With America’s Most Vulnerable Population”, Rolling Stone
Excellence in News Writing Award
Jen Colletta for “Lesbian Couple Turned Away From PA Bridal Shop”, Philadelphia Gay News
Excellence in News Writing Award (Non-daily)
David Artavia for “Sordid Lives Actor Alleges Mogul Benny Medina Tried to Rape Him”, The Advocate
Excellence in Photojournalism Award
Carolyn Van Houten for “Life in Transition”, San Antonio Express-News
Excellence in Profile Writing Award
Danika Worthington for “Portraits of Pride: An Exploration of the LGBTQ Community Ahead of PrideFest”, Denver Post
Excellence in Sports Writing Award
Tim Teeman for “When Floyd Mayweather Shouts ‘Faggot’, This Is What LGBT People Hear”, The Daily Beast
Excellence in Student Journalism Award
Leah Juliett for “Youth and LGBTQ Communities Disproportionately Victimized by Revenge Porn and Cyber Crimes”, GLAAD
Excellence in Travel Writing Award
Christopher Muther for “For Real: Salt Lake City is America’s Super Gay, Super Cool Hipster Haven”, The Boston Globe
Digital Awards:
Excellence in Blogging Award
Josh Robbins for “Fauci: From a Practical Standpoint the Risk is Zero”, ImStillJosh.com
Excellence in Digital Video Award
Roman Feeser, Alex Romano, Angelica Fusco, Nia Stevens and Luisa Garcia for “Uncharted: State of Mind”, CBS News
Excellence in Multimedia Award
Bill Daley for “Belmont Rocks: New Project Remembers Popular LGBTQ Gathering Spot”, The Chicago Tribune
Excellence in Online Journalism Award
Jessica Mason Pieklo for “Cakes for the Klan? Conservatives Craft a Trojan Horse in Supreme Court’s LGBTQ Discrimination Case”, Rewire.News
Editorial Awards:
Excellence in Column Writing Award
Lucas Grindley for “LGBTs to America: ‘We Told You So‘”, The Advocate
Excellence in Opinion/Editorial Writing Award
Chase Strangio for “How Transgender People Have Survived (and Thrived) Under a Year of Donald Trump”, INTO
Broadcast Awards:
Excellence in Documentary Award
Nick Broomfield and Marc Hoeferlin for “Whitney: Can I Be Me”, Showtime and BBC
Excellence in Local Television Award
Peggy Kusinski, Katy Smyser, Lisa Capitanini, Richard Moy, Julio Martinez and Nathan Halder for “Some Local Rules Keep Transgender Athletes From Competing In High Schools”, NBC5 Chicago
Excellence in Network Television Award
Todd Cross and Gabe Gutierrez for “One Year After Pulse Nightclub Shooting, 4 People Reflect on How Their Lives Changed”, Sunday TODAY with Willie Geist/NBC
Excellence in Podcast Award
Jacob Brogan and Benjamin Frisch for “Working”, Slate
Excellence in Radio Award
Natalie Winston, Gabriela Saldivia and David Greene for “‘They Told Me I Wasn’t A Human Being’: Gay Men Speak Of Brutal Treatment In Chechnya”, National Public Radio
Coverage Awards:
Excellence in Bisexual Coverage Award
Kate Sloan and Indiana Joel for “What It’s Like to Talk to Your Doctor About Sexual Health When You’re Bisexual”, Xtra
Excellence in Health or Fitness Coverage Award
Aliyah Musaliar, Isabella Ortiz, Noel Gasca and Jenny Asarnow for “Why Was I Taught Sex Ed by a Man Who Uses the Word ‘Slut’?”, KUOW Puget Sound Public Radio
Excellence in HIV/AIDS Coverage Award
Linda Villarosa for “America’s Hidden HIV Epidemic”, The New York Times Magazine
Excellence in Queer People of Color (QPOC) Coverage Award
Margie Fishman for “A Child’s Journey to ‘Truegender’”, The News Journal/USA Today
Excellence in Religion Coverage Award
Phoebe Wang for “God + The Gays”, The Heart (Radiotopia)
Excellence in Transgender Coverage Award
Ryan Kost for “Finding Himself”, The San Francisco Chronicle
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About NLGJA – The Association of LGBTQ Journalists
NLGJA is an organization of journalists, media professionals, educators and students working from within the news industry to foster fair and accurate coverage of LGBTQ issues. NLGJA opposes all forms of workplace bias and provides professional development to its members. For more information, visit www.nlgja.org.