for months of source work to break the story that a once-standout DEA agent known for lavish spending was arrested on charges of conspiring to launder money with a Colombian drug cartel he was supposed to be fighting. Their exclusive on the arrest came a year after they first broke the story of the alleged wrongdoing. https://bit.ly/2T60s2l
produced in text and video a compelling look at members of Americaâs high school Class of 2020, focusing on eventful lives shaped by a series of crises.
Irvine, collaborating with colleague Stephanie Mullen, set out to tell the story of a generation born in the aftermath of Sept. 11 that has faced a number of challenges â from the loss of a parent to wildfires and hurricanes, the Great Recession and, most recently, a pandemic and civil unrest over police brutality.
The result was a multiformat package with stunning portraits and a print story that took the reader through the graduatesâ stories in order of the events that have impacted them. Irvine also produced a video that featured several photos interspersed with self-shot video of three of the graduates.https://bit.ly/37jR80ihttps://bit.ly/3cTBASh
China and the Trump administration had opposing narratives about the early days of the new coronavirus epidemic: China bragged about providing information quickly to the world through the World Health Organization, while the Trump administration accused China and WHO of colluding to hide information.
It took The Associated Press â drawing on recordings, documents and interviews â to tell the definitive story: Rather than colluding with China, WHO itself was being kept in the dark, praising China in public to shake loose information while expressing considerable frustration in private.
APâs widely praised story, months in the making, was so sensitive that we did not name the two main journalists to avoid blowback in China and to prevent anyone from identifying our sources.
For in-depth reporting that drew back the curtains and punctured the preferred narratives of China, WHO and the Trump administration at the same time, the AP reporters who produced this stunning piece earn Best of the Week honors.
When smartphone video emerged more than two months after Ahmaud Arbery was killed by a white father and son while running through a Georgia neighborhood, the case burst into the national consciousness. AP race and ethnicity writer Aaron Morrison headed to Brunswick, Georgia, seeking to tell the full story of the 25-year-oldâs life.
Morrison and video journalist Sarah Blake Morgan interviewed Arberyâs mother on the road where her son was killed. That conversation became a centerpiece of the text and visual package, with further reporting by Russ Bynum and Kate Brumback completing the picture.
For a nuanced and unflinching profile of Arberyâs life that spotlights the racism experienced by many young black men and captures the pain of a grieving family, Morrison, Morgan, Bynum and Brumback share this weekâs Best of the States award.
working with AP colleagues around the country found that at least two-thirds of states are sharing the addresses of people who tested positive for the coronavirus with police and other first responders, and at least 10 states are going further, sharing the names of those who test positive, creating a potential chilling effect on people wanting to get tested. https://bit.ly/3dc0UnE
The end of May saw unprecedented news: The coronavirus pandemic continued to spread infection and wreak economic havoc around the globe, while much of the worldâs attention pivoted suddenly to protests across the U.S. that spread to Paris, London, Australia and elsewhere after the suffocation death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25.
This weekâs Best of the Week recognizes APâs work surrounding each of those mega-stories, with top honors going to Baltimore-based photographer Julio Cortez for his iconic photo of a protester holding an American flag aloft, and to the AP all-formats team in Brazil for continuing coverage of the virus in a nation being ravaged by COVID-19.
What and when did authorities in China know about the coronavirusâ initial spread and did they react fast enough? Those have become burning questions as COVID-19 tears a deadly and destructive path across the globe.
Among the toughest to answer, too.
The Associated Press cracked open Chinaâs lockdown on information with an exclusive story â based on internal documents and expert testimony â revealing that top officials in Beijing knew about a likely pandemic, but held off on warning the public for at least six days â while tens of thousands attended a banquet in Wuhan and millions more travelled for Lunar New Year festivities.
The storyâs byline â âBy The Associated Pressâ â testified to the risks run by the reporter who secured and developed the major scoop.
For breaking through Chinaâs tightly policed walls of information control about the critical first days of the pandemic, with a scoop secured in one of the worldâs toughest media environments, the unnamed but not unsung AP reporter is this weekâs Best of the Week laureate.
captured the conflict unfolding on the Turkish-Greek border in a way that competitors couldnât match. With gendarmes making it more and more difficult for journalists to get close to the border clashes between Greek riot police and migrants attempting to cross the border from Turkey, the pair had to blend in among migrants to avoid the attention of Turkish police. They carried food and water in plastic bags and hid their cameras inside their clothes, dropping to the ground among migrants to take cover from tear gas fired from the Greek side. Their tactics enabled them to make photos and video â unmatched by other agencies â of the chaos and desperation at the border.https://bit.ly/3aNn1z1https://bit.ly/38KWqRN
Coverage by an Associated Press team dominated the closely watched Harvey Weinstein verdict, delivering wins in all formats with speed, depth and exclusivity. Superior planning and preparation, and outstanding coordination on the day of the verdict, gave AP the edge.
Highlights included the breaking news story moving on the wire within a minute of the verdict, exclusive video of Weinstein leaving the courthouse by ambulance, and an enterprising behind-the-scenes photo essay on the women journalists covering the trial that earned remarkable play.
For quick, comprehensive and distinctive coverage that kept the AP ahead on one of the biggest trials of the year so far, Mary Altaffer, Michael R. Sisak, Tom Hays, David Martin, Ted Shaffrey, Robert Bumsted, John Minchillo, Craig Ruttle and Sophie Rosenbaum win APâs Best of the Week award.
Kantele Franko, reporter, Columbus, Ohio; Larry Lage, sports writer, Detroit; and Thomas Peipert, reporter, Denver, for nimble coordination across three regions to secure an all-formats interview with the first athlete â Olympic wrestler Andy Hrovat â to make public accusations of sexual abuse against now-deceased Dr. Robert Anderson of the University of Michigan.https://bit.ly/2HZ8m7Ghttps://bit.ly/2PwPH7j
for breaking the news of a lawsuit alleging dozens of victims and decades of abuse at a state-run New Hampshire youth detention center. The lead plaintiff in the suit gave Ramer an exclusive interview and he allowed AP to photograph him, something no other media outlet had done. Ramer also reported that one of the plaintiffâs alleged abusers worked as a clubhouse attendant for the Boston Red Sox until he was suspended without pay in July. https://bit.ly/35U707C
As news of a racially motivated café shooting started trickling out shortly before midnight on Feb. 19, the AP team in Germany burst into action with an all-hands-on-desk effort that dominated coverage of this major story.
APâs success included a huge win on live video coordinated by Kerstin Sopke, brisk filing of the breaking story by Geir Moulson and Frank Jordans, and Michael Probstâs photos from the scene that landed on the front pages of major publications.
Their effort was supplemented by a strong effort from other corners of the AP as journalists interviewed survivors and members of the immigrant community, wrote about the rise of far-right violence in Germany and followed the written trail left by the killer. Play for the story was phenomenal.
For their speed, smart news judgment and superior coordination that gave AP a massive lead on a big story as it broke, Probst, Moulson, Sopke and Jordans are APâs Best of the Week winners.
marked the anniversary of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. â where 17 people were killed, allegedly by a mentally disturbed man â with smart accountability journalism about a key Florida âred flagâ bill passed in the massacreâs wake.
Working over several months to get county-by-county breakdowns that no other outlet had, Spencer found that the law had been used to get weapons away from people deemed dangerous no less than 3,500 times since the Parkland shooting. Even so, his analysis showed the law is applied inconsistently, with some counties and cities using it rarely and others not at all.
The story was a strong look at how red flag laws â now passed in nearly a dozen states â are playing out on the ground, and it drew widespread attention and engagement. https://bit.ly/2P7Zws2
for quick response and resourceful coverage during and after a protracted mass shooting â Thailandâs worst-ever â that left 29 people and the gunman dead. APâs first story was filed five minutes after the alert hit the wire, and we had the first agency-produced video from the scene, in a coordinated effort by all formats as the gunman held of police for some 16 hours.https://bit.ly/2OQAzBihttps://bit.ly/3bybsghhttps://bit.ly/39y6kaghttps://bit.ly/2UNTRuThttps://bit.ly/2UNAJgt
After its shocking Jan. 25 report on the locust swarms devastating agriculture in Kenya, APâs Nairobi team came through with another truly striking package on the worst locust outbreak that parts of East Africa have seen in 70 years. This time, Nairobi staffers Ben Curtis and Josphat Kasire obtained exclusive coverage of the next wave of young locusts now bulking up in Somaliaâs desert.
The story posed multiple challenges, not the least of which was the very real threat of al-Shabab extremists in the area. And the young insects were relentless. âIf you put anything down on the ground for a minute, youâd find a bunch of bugs crawling over it,â Curtis recounted.
Despite the obstacles, the team produced stunning images and vivid reporting from the source of the widespread outbreak, proof that the regionâs infestation was far from over.
For resourceful and determined work that resulted in an only-on-AP direct look at the ravages of a veritable Biblical plague of locusts, Kasire and Curtis win APâs Best of the Week award.
for advancing the story he broke a week earlier, now reporting exclusively on court filings claiming that work done for the areaâs Roman Catholic archdiocese by the NFLâs New Orleans Saints went beyond âminimalâ public relations work on sex abuse by clergy, and allegedly included helping to shape a list of credibly accused clergy that appears to be undercounted. Mustain also reported on a judgeâs ruling that the AP can move forward with its case to have documents between the Saints and the archdiocese made public. https://bit.ly/3718pK7
On the campaign trail, presidential candidate Amy Klobuchar has often cited a case â a life sentence given to black teen for killing a young girl â as proof of her tough-on-crime bona fides as a former prosecutor.
Over the course of a year, Minnesota-based investigative reporter Robin McDowell examined the case against Myon Burrell, who was 16 when he was sentenced to life in prison for the 2002 death of 11-year-old Tyesha Edwards.
McDowell found major irregularities, including inconsistent evidence and questionable police tactics. The resulting package had impact, forcing new scrutiny of the case and Klobucharâs handling of it.
For dogged reported that shed new light and focused attention on the case against a man who has long said he was wrongfully convicted, McDowell wins this weekâs Best of the States award.
for landing an exclusive report about the columnist E. Jean Carroll seeking a DNA sample from President Donald Trump to potentially back her accusation that he raped her in a department store dressing room. Peltz raised the question of DNA testing with Carrollâs legal team last November and stayed in contact with the team, prompting them to reach out with the news that they had tested the dress Carroll wore during the alleged assault. https://bit.ly/36ZTaRM
for delivering exclusive text, video and photos from the ground in Wuhan, China, just as the virus began to spread. Their quick deployment meant that the AP was the only agency on the ground producing content for two days, and almost the only media at all on the first day. Shooting from a taxi outside the hospital, they recorded dramatic images of workers dressed head to toe in white protective suits. And they were questioned by police, but not detained, while shooting exteriors of the market where the outbreak may have started. Their coverage gave AP exclusive images and interviews in all formats, with their video edits on day one leading all stories, including impeachment.https://bit.ly/3aQ4V01https://bit.ly/38HWulIhttps://bit.ly/2uH5adi
From the moment a caravan of Central American migrants set out from Honduras and crossed through Guatemala toward a series of standoffs with Mexican authorities, the AP was there, documenting every step.
Knowing that Mexican authorities were determined not to let the migrants pass, editors deployed cross-format teams to cover the caravan from both the Guatemalan and the Mexican sides of the border. That effort put the AP far ahead of the competition when the migrants started to cross the Suchiate River into Mexico.
In a coordinated effort, AP staffers and stringers shared information and skills to deliver dramatic coverage, including live video, as people waded across the river and scuffled with Mexicoâs National Guard. The all-formats coverage was among APâs top stories for Jan. 22.
For following the story early and then collaborating closely to produce dominant images and stories of the latest chapter in the migrant saga from Central America, the team of MoisĂ©s Castillo, MarĂa Verza, Sonia PĂ©rez D., Marco Ugarte, Peter Orsi, Diego Delgado, Marcelo Viaño and Santiago Billy share APâs Best of the Week honors.
