for an all-formats package on the pervasive threat to the Keystone Stateâs $18 billion agriculture industry posed by the invasive spotted lanternfly.https://bit.ly/2llO8gshttps://bit.ly/2AFDqpm
With California sinking deeper into drought as wildfire season approaches, AP set out to show the droughtâs impact on vulnerable areas — beyond the orange glow of burning homes. Top freelance photographers Noah Berger and Josh Edelson teamed up with reporter Adam Beam, focusing on the six reservoirs with the lowest water levels.
Both photographers are trained and equipped with drones; they delivered stunning visuals, including boat docks beached on dry land, charred hillside homes overlooking a lake reduced to puddle-like status and boat launches that donât even reach the waterâs edge. Meanwhile, Beam conducted interviews and visited the massive Lake Oroville reservoir, where the deadliest U.S. wildfire in a century raged in 2018.
The package was enhanced by digital storyteller Samantha Shotzbarger, who created a arresting presentation giving readers an immersive view of the evaporating reservoirs.
For a revealing and forbidding look at the effects of Californiaâs drought, the team of Berger, Edelson, Beam and Shotzbarger earns this weekâs Best of the States award.
expanded APâs international coverage of vaccination campaigns beyond the big cities. The Istanbul-based freelancer delivered strong photos and video of medical teams giving shots to elderly villagers in remote settlements in the mountainous Sivas province of central Turkey.With AP adding text and editing resources, Gurelâs striking package got wide play, and the video was picked up by clients in Asia, the Middle East and Europe. https://bit.ly/3c7wL9Mhttps://bit.ly/2MSqlmghttps://bit.ly/3c3ACEy
for a series of scoops in the investigation of the Pensacola naval station shooting, keeping AP ahead of national and local media in the days that followed. From Farringtonâs report that investigators believed the shooter hosted a dinner party where participants viewed videos of mass shootings, to Balsamoâs confirmation of the shooterâs nationality and name, the three led coverage of one of the weekâs top stories. On Monday, at least 10 Florida newspapers had the AP coverage on their front pages, including the Miami Herald, Tampa Bay Times and Orlando Sentinel. https://bit.ly/35leT6o
for reacting quickly to put AP ahead of all competition on the breaking news of an active shooter at Pearl Harbor, and maintaining the competitive advantage with tremendous collaboration in all formats, including live video, throughout the day. https://bit.ly/34bHpGk
were the first to report that Myanmarâs military had abducted thousands, especially young men and boys, in a bid to break the back of the three-month uprising against the countryâs military coup.The story was difficult to report, given the military's targeting of journalists in Myanmar and the fact that the junta keeps cutting internet access. Milko and Gelineau worked with a brave stringer in Myanmar who identified more than 20 cases of abductions. Those, along with the contributions of another courageous stringer, supplied the storyâs main subjects. The pair also analyzed more than 3,500 arrests collected by a non-profit group, revealing that many of the disappeared were young men and boys, and that in most cases their families did not know where they were.The story broke ground not only in terms of news, but in the previously unreported depth and detail of the cases they described. Milko and Gelineau also took particular care not to put either our staffers or our sources into danger. Their reporting did not rely on our staff in Myanmar, and they used Milkoâs location, Jakarta, as the dateline. They also used partial names for most of the subjects to protect them from retaliation.The story was among the top 10 on the AP News app and generated strong reactions from observers, readers and, significantly, Myanmarâs military, which was concerned enough to hold two rare news conferences: one when AP asked for comment and another after the story ran, with Gelineau the only reporter present from a Western news organization. https://aplink.news/xzz
Concord-based reporter Holly Ramer, who has owned the story of abuse allegations at New Hampshireâs state-run youth detention center for more than a year, used source work to break news once again: A lawsuit filed in early 2020 has grown to include 230 men and women who say they were abused as children by 150 staffers over the course of six decades.
Ramerâs story was based on exclusive interviews with the plaintiffsâ attorney and three victims, who described sickening allegations including broken bones, gang rape and impregnation. Powerful images by Boston photographer Charlie Krupa and video journalist Rodrique Ngowi complemented the piece.
APâs coverage prompted three Democratic lawmakers to call on Gov. Chris Sununu to shut down the center, and at least 40 more victims have come forward since the story ran.
For this latest example of impactful storytelling that has helped expose a grave scandal at the stateâs youth detention center, Ramer, Krupa and Ngowi earn Best of the States honors.
teamed up to tell the moving story of a Mississippi blues artist who is keeping a musical tradition alive. Reporter Willingham couldnât find a phone number for Grammy-nominated Jimmy âDuckâ Holmes â musician, owner of the oldest-surviving juke joint in the country and the keeper of the unique Bentonia, Mississippi, blues musical tradition â so she set off to find him and interview him in the Blue Front CafĂ©. She then returned twice for more interviews, details of Holmesâ daily life, and impressive visuals by photographer Solis and video journalist Plaisance Jenkins. The all-formats package brought attention to Holmesâ rich musical contributions and conveyed a strong sense of place â Holmesâ cafĂ© isnât just a music spot but a part of the fabric of the close-knit community. The story had some 23,000 pageviews on AP News with remarkably high reader engagement.https://bit.ly/2OOQF1ihttps://bit.ly/3rGnewG
Iowa City correspondent Ryan J. Foley has written extensively about problems tracking felons who are ineligible to vote in Iowa, but it had been five years since heâd gotten a copy of the database itself. So when a trusted source produced a state database of 103,000 felons, Foley set to work analyzing the data. He found it riddled with errors, including laughable mistakes â such as the Des Moines Police Department being banned from voting.
The story was used extensively by Iowa newspapers and broadcasters, who were especially interested given that Iowaâs governor is seeking to change the law regarding voting by felons who have completed their sentences.
For detailed research and reporting that produced an engaging story of statewide interest, Foley earns APâs Best of the States award.
for taking a hard look at the financial reckoning of the U.S. Roman Catholic sex abuse trials, and reporting exclusively that changing laws and attitudes could translate into a flood of lawsuits with potential payouts topping $4 billion. Condon and Mustian reported on the potential impact of new laws, enacted in 15 states, that extend or suspend the statute of limitations governing claims. The pair found several attorneys who have turned their entire practices over to such cases, with TV ads and billboards seeking clients. https://bit.ly/36oRoJX
The death of the Islamic State group âcaliphâ Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was one of the most competitive stories in the world in recent weeks. Journalists scrambled to uncover details of the U.S. operation and how the Islamic State leader ended up in a hideout in Syria.
Beirut-based Middle East reporter Sarah El Deeb put the AP out front with a story based on exclusive interviews recounting al-Baghdadiâs final days, as he was shuttled furtively around Syria by a dwindling circle of confidants.
Enhancing the narrative were dramatic details from a teenage girl who had been enslaved by al-Baghdadi as he sought refuge. El Deeb elicited the previously untold details through sensitive and dogged reporting.
The story stood out from the many accounts that simply echoed the official account of al-Baghdadiâs death, demonstrating not only the APâs dominance on a global story but also its trusted ability to provide facts-based reporting from the ground in the region.
For outstanding source work and reporting on a story of intense interest, Sarah El Deeb wins APâs Best of the Week award.
Chicago-based national writer Martha Irvine has always been interested in stories about the cityâs neighborhoods that buck stereotypes. So when she learned of a grassroots project to âreclaimâ abandoned housing on the cityâs South Side, Irvine began what she calls âa labor of love.â
She spent months getting to know the people of the Chicago Lawn neighborhood and their stories. Residents â ex-cons, immigrants, members of the urban working class â were not prepared to let their neighborhood succumb to the malaise that had engulfed other areas of the city, so they came together to make Chicago Lawn a desirable place to live.
Irvine did it all â not just writing this remarkable story, but shooting the photos and video. The package received heavy play and elicited rewarding feedback. One woman called the work âincredibly uplifting,â adding, âLoved the video, too. Inspiration station.â
For a compelling all-formats package that shed light on a Chicago neighborhoodâs success story and resonated with readers, Martha Irvine earns this weekâs Best of the States award.
Jolted out of bed by the 6.4-magnitude earthquake just before 4 a.m., correspondent Llazar Semini in Tirana knew immediately he was dealing with a major story. Communications networks were shaky, but he managed to reach colleagues in other formats by phone, triggering what would become a virtual sweep of the disaster coverage.
The quick decisions made in the early hours resulted in a compelling all-formats report and gave AP the clear advantage over competitive agencies. Nowhere was that advantage more evident than in live video â AP picked up live video within an hour of the quake, and several hours before any of the competition.
Coverage was just as impressive in text, photo and video edits. APâs dominance continued with drone video, and all-formats coverage of dramatic rescue efforts and anguished survivors.
For resourceful work that powerfully conveyed the human toll and devastation while delivering a dominant competitive performance, the multinational all-formats team of Llazar Semini, Visar Kryeziu, Hektor Pustina, Amer Cohadzic, Erion Xhiabati, Florent Bajrami, Sylejman Klokkoqi and Petros Giannakouris shares APâs Best of the Week.
Mark Pratt, a breaking news staffer in Boston, has written several stories exploring the complicated past of Theodor Seuss Geisel — Dr. Seuss. The company that preserves and protects the authorâs legacy knew it could trust him.
So Dr. Seuss Enterprises gave Pratt early word on a story that would become a global bestseller for AP, generating off-the-charts customer use for three days and eventually becoming the single most-used AP story of 2021 to date: The company was ceasing publication and sales of six Seuss books because of their offensive imagery.
Prattâs story instantly rocketed to the very top of a hectic news cycle, touching off a firestorm of commentary and conservative claims of âcancel culture.â The piece exceeded 2.5 million pageviews — catapulting it past the Capitol insurrection coverage in terms of customer use and clicks.
For nurturing trust with a newsmaker that yielded an AP exclusive still resonating with customers and news consumers, Pratt wins APâs Best of the Week award.
relied on meticulous planning, their in-depth knowledge of the subject, and APâs national footprint to lead comprehensive coverage of just-released 2020 U.S. Census numbers. The first batch of numbers were deceptively simple â on the surface, a single population number from each state and bare-bones information on congressional seats and presidential electors. But with robust preparation and background on the headcountâs implications, the pair pushed AP's coverage to the forefront nationally on an announcement that turned out to contain plenty of surprises.While leveraging APâs reach with a big assist from colleagues who helped prepare state stories all over the country, as well as advance coverage of millennial migration, a likely Latino undercount in the Sunbelt and Californiaâs loss of a seat for the first time in its history, Schneider and Riccardi deftly adapted the APâs spot story to the news that 13 states would either gain or lose congressional seats. The spot coverage included an informative glance box of winners and losers, an interactive map and independent analysis by the AP data team.Taken as a whole, the weeklong tour de force showcased the APâs range and depth, with Schneider and Riccardi leading the effort.https://bit.ly/3toZFZghttps://bit.ly/3elizMlhttps://bit.ly/2PRIz8Ohttps://bit.ly/2Suq5fDhttps://bit.ly/3b3eIBE
for determined reporting and source work to reveal exclusively that the FBI was investigating how Gov. Tom Wolfâs administration came to issue permits for construction of a multibillion-dollar pipeline project to carry highly volatile natural gas liquids across Pennsylvania. https://bit.ly/2pBqNcO
Severe storms, extreme flooding and aging infrastructure present a rising peril throughout much of the U.S., but trying to assess the risks has been extremely difficult. The reason: The federal agency overseeing the nationâs dams has sealed off the most essential information about their condition and the potential threats to those living downstream.
Prying that information loose took the kind of dedicated, 50-state effort that the AP is uniquely positioned to pursue. Data journalist Michelle Minkoff and Northern New England correspondent Michael Casey, collaborating with state government team member David Lieb and a visual team led by video journalist Allen Breed â as well as a cast of AP state reporters, photographers and data journalists â produced a deeply reported and visually stunning package revealing the dangers of nearly 1,700 aging dams, from Hawaii to Massachusetts.
Some two years in the making, the package resulted in explosive play â more than 100,000 page views on AP News and more than 80 front pages.
For their exhaustive efforts to unlock critical public information and relay the findings in an engaging fashion, Minkoff, Casey, Lieb and Breed win this weekâs Best of the States award.
After reporting for years on life-or-death results of global warming such as floods and wildfires, Traverse City, Michigan, correspondent John Flesher uncovered another serious but little-recognized consequence: Climate change poses an increasingly troublesome and costly threat to food crop storage in the United States and much of the world.
To illustrate the problem, Flesher teamed with Detroit-based video journalist Mike Householder and photographer Carlos Osorio on the farm of a Michigan family now using refrigerators to cool their harvested potatoes. Michigan has been the top U.S. producer of potatoes used for chips, thanks to a mild climate that has — until now at least — let farmers store their crops for months using only outdoor air to cool them. Scientists say those conditions are likely become scarcer as the planet gets hotter.
The teamâs exclusive, all-formats package drew strong play nationally.
For relatable coverage that calls attention to an underreported consequence of climate change — one with widespread implications — the team of Flesher, Householder and Osorio wins this weekâs Best of the States award.
obtained rare access to members of Haitiâs wealthy elite â and to the violent gangs that threaten them â for a deep look at doing business in this failed state. Using contacts and determination and building trust, they explored how entrepreneurs continue to operate in an environment where more than 100 heavily armed gangs control access to the port, the fuel and the food supply chains. Kidnappings and killings are not uncommon in the impoverished capital, leaderless after the assassination of President Jovenel MoĂŻse.During their reporting, the pair was threatened verbally by people who didn't want to be photographed and with weapons by gangsters who didn't want them there at all. After many attempts, Buenos-Aires based photographer Abd and freelance reporter Arce finally gained access to Barbecue, the leader of a coalition of gangs who presents himself as a populist fighting economic injustices, but who operates as an armed thug instilling fear in the people.The piece was among APâs top stories in reader engagement and earned kudos from Pulitzer Center funders: â(Abd and Arce) avoided all the easy frameworks ... and did a fantastic job depicting the abject inequity that is at the root of Haiti's social/economic collapse,â wrote Executive Editor Marina Walker. https://aplink.news/wzdhttps://aplink.photos/b47
for building on their previous reporting about the Brothers Home, where some of the worst human rights atrocities in modern South Korean history had taken place. Kim and Klug have now revealed that the notorious facility was part of an orphanage pipeline feeding the demand of private adoption agencies. A former U.S. diplomat specializing in the Koreas said the story shows âThe AP continues to be second to none in South Korea-based investigative reporting.â https://bit.ly/2KkAe7C
