Best of the Week — First Winner

Unmatchable coverage by AP team in Mariupol: ‘Their images are defining this war’

Rarely is the difference so stark between news organizations that subscribe to the AP and those that don’t. That’s down to the tireless efforts of AP staffers around the world who have reported, edited, planned, provisioned and advised to make our coverage of Ukraine truly stellar. And it’s especially true in the coverage of a single city that has seen some of the war’s worst horrors.AP’s Germany-based video journalist Mstyslav Chernov, photographer Evgeniy Maloletka and freelance producer Vasilisa Stepanenko have been the only international journalists to chronicle the tragedies of Mariupol. The team was recognized with last week’s Best of the Week award, and their unflinching coverage continued, the world riveted not only by their presence, but by their stunning journalism. Amid the chaos, they have found stories so moving — and told them so compellingly — that it’s impossible to tell the broader story of Ukraine without them.Usage for the work has been extraordinary. “Their images,” wrote Nick Schifrin of PBS NewsHour, “are defining this war.”For courageous, must-have coverage from the heart of the world’s biggest story, the team of Chernov, Maloletka and Stepanenko is AP’s Best of the Week — First Winner.

Beat of the Week

(Honorable Mention)

AP Exclusive: FBI investigating abuse by New Orleans clergy

reported exclusively that the FBI has opened a sweeping probe into sex abuse in the Roman Catholic Church in New Orleans, marking a rare federal foray into such a case, looking specifically at whether priests took children across state lines to molest them.Mustian’s scoop, based on law enforcement authorities and others familiar with the probe, marked a major shift in strategy for federal authorities, who have rarely opened investigations into the Catholic clergy abuse scandals, particularly cases built around the Mann Act, a century-old, anti-sex trafficking law that prohibits taking anyone across state lines for illicit sex.Mustian’s detailed reporting found that many of the cases the FBI is probing in New Orleans allege abuse by clergy during out-of-state trips, including to Mississippi camps or amusement parks in Texas and Florida.Read more

Beat of the Week

(Honorable Mention)

Fast, sensitive coverage of Russian missile strike and its youngest victim

were quick to react when Russian missiles struck Vinnytsia in west-central Ukraine, killing 24.The strong all-formats coverage included interviews with survivors and the story of Liza Dmytrieva, a 4-year-old victim who was the subject of a video posted by her mother shortly before the missile strike. That poignant video went viral after the girl's death, and AP’s sensitive interview with the girl’s great-aunt earned the team access to Liza’s funeral.Powerful images of the family bent over Liza’s open coffin, and the accompanying text and video, were widely used — compelling coverage that brought home the suffering of innocent civilians.Read more

Beat of the Week

(Honorable Mention)

Only on AP: Probe finds evidence of bank boss’s romance with top aide

exclusively reported details of an internal investigation finding that a former Trump official, president of Latin America’s biggest development bank, had an inappropriate romantic relationship with his chief of staff — a scoop followed hours later by the bank directors’ vote to recommend firing the executive.Latin America correspondent Goodman had been reporting for months on the anonymous allegations surrounding Inter-American Development Bank President Mauricio Claver-Carone. He was not alone; other major news organizations were chasing the story too. But Goodman broke the news when he obtained a law firm’s report with evidence of the relationship, including a photo of a restaurant place mat on which the couple purportedly outlined a “contract” and a timeline for divorcing their spouses and getting married.Read more

Best of the Week — First Winner

Determined reporting, solid sourcing and regional expertise put AP ahead on Ukraine coverage

AP journalists Matt Lee and Vladimir Isachenkov, along with colleagues covering the ongoing Ukraine-Russia crisis, delivered on AP’s promise — fast, accurate, contextualized reporting on one of the world’s most complex stories.

Diplomatic writer Lee and fellow Washington staffers worked sources late into a Friday evening to score a lengthy beat over the competition, breaking the news that the U.S. was evacuating most of its embassy personnel from Ukraine. Other news organizations needed hours to catch up to the story. Moscow-based Isachenkov, drawing on his deep knowledge of the region, has not only been the lead writer for on-the-ground spot developments, but has contributed a wealth of stories explaining the nuances, strategies and background behind the breaking news.

The work of Lee and Isachenkov capped a streak of remarkable all-formats coverage by AP teams in Ukraine, including standout visuals.

For well-sourced, steadfast reporting that has consistently kept the AP ahead on the Ukraine crisis, Lee and Isachenkov, in collaboration with dedicated colleagues, earn AP’s Best of the Week — First Winner honors.

Best of the Week — First Winner

AP’s all-formats team delivers unmatched coverage of refugees fleeing Ukraine

With hundreds of hours of live coverage, gripping portraits of people fleeing, and broad takes on the impact of the migration wave, AP’s multiformat team covering people displaced by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has provided unrivaled coverage of Europe’s biggest refugee crisis since World War II.

AP journalists posted at Ukraine’s borders and within the country have put a human face to the mass movement of refugees, mostly women and children who have left their homes traumatized and exhausted, sometimes after being trapped for days or weeks in their basements to escape bombardment.

AP’s coverage started a week before the war began at the Medyka border crossing in Poland, which just days later would become a main entry point for tens of thousands of Ukrainians. In the month since, text, photo and video journalists have worked tirelessly to capture the surge, from the stress on countries accepting the brunt of the new arrivals to the generosity shown by volunteers opening their homes to the refugees.

For chronicling the exodus of an estimated 3.5 million Ukrainians with compassion, vigor and dedication to the story, AP’s border/refugee team earns Best of the Week — First Winner.

Best of the Week — First Winner

‘Method to the violence’: Dogged investigation and groundbreaking visuals document Bucha ‘cleansing’

An all formats team of AP journalists, working in partnership with PBS “Frontline” and SITU Research, used surveillance camera footage, intercepted phone calls and an exclusive 3D animation of Bucha to detail Russia’s monthlong reign of terror in the Ukrainian city.

The evidence collected, including 80.000 video files and thousands of audio files, told the chilling tale of the fall of Bucha and how, over the month that followed, Russian occupiers terrorized the local population with raids, torture and summary executions. In phone calls home Russian soldiers described “zachistka” — cleansing — killing civilians under orders from their leaders.

No other news organization has conducted such a deep and revealing analysis of the atrocities in Bucha.

For their meticulous, innovative work and their collaboration across formats and continents, the team of Erika Kinetz, Oleksandr Stashevskyi, Vasilisa Stepanenko, Adam Pemble, Allen Breed, Michael Biesecker, Jeannie Ohm and Dario Lopez is AP’s Best of the Week — First Winner.

Best of the Week — First Winner

Ukrainian medic gives AP exclusive bodycam video revealing the tragedy of Mariupol

A celebrated Ukrainian medic recorded her front-line work in Mariupol on a data card no bigger than a thumbnail, then arranged to get it to AP journalists in the besieged city before she was captured by Russian forces. AP then smuggled it out to the world inside a tampon.

The result was a remarkable all-formats package showing firsthand the horror of the war in the devastated Ukrainian port city, while drawing attention to the Russian treatment of prisoners as well as the number of prominent Ukrainians, like medic Yuliia Paievska, who have disappeared.

The piece was AP’s most-engaged and most-viewed story of the week on apnews.com, and drew enormous media attention.

For a riveting look at the tragedy in Mariupol, and shining a needed and compassionate light on the fate of a courageous medic, the team of Vasilisa Stepanenko, Lori Hinnant, Mstyslav Chernov, Alyssa Goodman and Serginho Roosblad shares AP’s Best of the Week — First Winner honors.

Best of the Week — First Winner

Unique AP visual investigation points to 600 dead in airstrike on Mariupol theater

A deeply reported, innovative and meticulous AP investigation determined that the deadliest apparent war crime so far in Ukraine — the March 16 Mariupol theater airstrike — likely killed about 600 people, twice as many as previously reported.

AP’s first full-blown visual investigation drew on survivors’ accounts, photos, video, experts and a 3D digital model of the theater to reconstruct what happened that day. The resulting package offered a vivid, detailed narrative of the events inside the theater, including elements that had not previously been reported, all delivered in an arresting presentation.

For a remarkable investigation that harnessed the power of all formats to break news, the team of Hinnant, Ritzel, Chernov, Stepanenko and Goodman is AP’s Best of the Week — First Winner.

Best of the Week — First Winner

Inside a Lviv apartment building, AP team gives a glimpse of life for displaced Ukrainians

London-based news director Susie Blann wanted to tell the story of how the city of Lviv had welcomed hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians who fled their homes during the Russian invasion but chose to remain in their country.

Blann, joined by photographer Nariman El-Mofty, video journalist Renata Brito and text reporter Cara Anna, looked behind the doors of one Lviv apartment block, earning the trust of people from Irpin, Kyiv and Kharkiv who had found temporary housing there and were willing to tell their stories.

The result was a remarkable presentation produced in collaboration with Natalie Castañeda, giving a deeply personal glimpse into the lives of some of the millions of people displaced by war.

For their tireless, resourceful work in demanding circumstances, the team of Blann, Anna, El-Mofty, Brito and Castañeda is the AP’s Best of the Week — First Winner.

Best of the Week — First Winner

Ukraine visuals document an exceptionally dark chapter of the war; intelligence says aides misled Putin

AP teams have again dominated coverage of war in Ukraine on two fronts, this time in horrifying images of civilians killed in Bucha and surrounding areas outside Kyiv, and in stories out of Washington and London, where AP was first with a report that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aides have been misleading him about the war.

Recently declassified information from a reliable source led to Washington’s scoop that Putin was reportedly “misinformed by his advisors about how badly the Russian military is performing.” AP’s story beat the competition and scored sky-high reader engagement, and a smart follow-up out of London delved into the strategic value of declassifying such intelligence.

On the ground in Ukraine, AP video and photojournalists arrived Saturday in Bucha, outside Kyiv, after Russian forces were ousted. There they found civilians lying dead in the streets, destroyed Russian military equipment and dead Russian servicemen. The following day the AP journalists were first to record the bodies of eight men who were killed execution style, as well as a mass grave and the bodies of a village mayor and her family.

The grim images define one of the darkest chapters on the war so far and raise fears of what may be unfolding in areas as yet inaccessible to journalists.

For their vital role documenting this brutal episode of the war, and for revealing reports of failures in the Kremlin’s intelligence at the highest levels, the journalism of Nebi Qena, Sasha Stashevsky, Vadim Ghirda, Andrea Rosa and Rodrigo Abd in Ukraine, Aamer Madhani and Nomaan Merchant in Washington, and Jill Lawless in London receives AP’s Best of The Week — First Winner honors.

Beat of the Week

(Honorable Mention)

Tip and teamwork deliver scoop on seizure of oligarch’s yacht

put the AP hours ahead of the competition on the seizure of a Russian oligarch’s yacht in Spain.A tip to U.S. Department of Justice reporter Balsamo triggered the coverage; he alerted Madrid chief correspondent Parra who confirmed details of the seizure and put Ubilla on the scene, reporting and making images as authorities boarded the $120 million vessel belonging to billionaire friend of Putin.The all-formats piece was one of AP’s most-read stories of the day; it was hours before competitors could report the basics using the federal government’s press announcement — and even then they still had to rely on Ubilla’s visuals.Read more

Best of the Week — First Winner

AP account of last journalists in Mariupol is a must-read; investigation builds case for war crimes

At great personal risk, AP’s team in Mariupol produced some of the bravest, most revealing work out of Ukraine. The backstory of their determined reporting is masterfully retold by Paris-based writer Lori Hinnant in a blockbuster, all-formats package that riveted readers around the world.

The stunning video, photos and text produced during 20 days and nights in Mariupol also contributed to an impressive AP collaboration with PBS Frontline, documenting Russian attacks on medical facilities, ambulances and medics — a deeply reported package in an ongoing effort to build the case for war crimes.

For extraordinary work in Mariupol and for telling the tale of the AP’s courageous journalism there, Mstyslav Chernov, Evgeniy Maloletka, Vasylisa Stepanenko and Lori Hinnant share AP’s Best of the Week alongside the war crimes reporting team of Erika Kinetz, Michael Biesecker, Beatrice Dupuy, Larry Fenn, Richard Lardner, Sarah El Deeb, Jason Dearen and Juliet Linderman.

Best of the Week — First Winner

As the world watches Ukraine, AP is the world’s eyes on besieged Mariupol

With the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol under siege by Russian forces, two courageous AP journalists, Germany-based video journalist Mstyslav Chernov and Kyiv photographer Evgeniy Maloletka, have been out in the streets, day in and day out, virtually alone in chronicling the city’s fall into chaos, despair and utter isolation, and the suffering of the civilian population.

Driving a van with windows blown out by explosions and filing their video and photos when they can establish communications, the pair has been the world’s only eyes on a key city that is suffering at the hands of the Russian offensive. Their images and words have riveted the world’s attention.

For harrowing reporting from a besieged city that would go unseen without their unflinching courage, we are honored to award the pair AP’s Best of the Week — First Winner.

Beat of the Week

(Honorable Mention)

AP Investigation: Trump briefed on bounties in 2019

worked sources to reveal that a year earlier than originally believed, officials briefed President Donald Trump on intelligence reports of Russian bounties on American troops in Afghanistan. Coming on the heels of The New York Times scoop on the reported bounties, Laporta's reporting dramatically changed the story’s timeline. He further advanced the story with news that then-National Security Advisor John Bolton told colleagues that he personally briefed Trump on the matter, and Laporta also broke the news that the military was investigating the death of three Marines killed in an ambush last year. https://bit.ly/2O3FtKn

Beat of the Week

(Honorable Mention)

Letter from Trump legal team blasts Comey as ‘Machiavellian’

for exclusively reporting that a letter from the Trump legal team to special counsel Robert Mueller called fired FBI Director James Comey “Machiavellian,” dishonest and “unbounded by law and regulation.” https://bit.ly/2ukovhs

Beat of the Week

(Honorable Mention)

Fired FBI Deputy McCabe suing FBI and Justice Dept.

for breaking the news that fired FBI Deputy Andrew McCabe was suing the FBI and Justice Department for news related to his firing. https://abcn.ws/2MMJSQe

Beat of the Week

(Honorable Mention)

First western interview with 'Trump Tower meeting' lawyer Veselnitskaya

for obtaining the first published western interview of Natalia Veselnitskaya. The Russian lawyer, with reported links to the Kremlin, was at the center of a famous meeting in Trump Tower with Donald Trump Jr. She told AP she has not yet been called for questioning by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. https://bit.ly/2HYgQNR

Beat of the Week

(Honorable Mention)

Syria cease-fire deal rife with legal, liability questions

for working sources to provide the most detailed coverage of the Syria ceasefire deal struck by the U.S. and Russia. http://abcn.ws/2cdUVSd

Beat of the Week

(Honorable Mention)

AP Interview: Infantino Fighting Resistance to Overhaul FIFA

for an in-depth interview with Gianni Infantino, the new president of FIFA. http://tiny.cc/7jlxey