for exclusively reporting that a former top New York State government official fired a year ago for sexual harassment was quietly reassigned to another agency where heâs been making $136,000 a year while doing no work. https://bit.ly/2Cv8BVz
for obtaining an exclusive 2015 letter from the pope revealing that he knew about the scandal around a controversial bishop hiding sexual abuse but named him to the helm of the diocese of Osorno anyway. http://bit.ly/2mQeCTU
When BuzzFeed broke the news that the longest-serving current U.S. House member had settled a sexual harassment complaint, one notable thing missing was comment from U.S. Rep. John Conyers himself. The 88-year-old Conyers rarely gives interviews anymore, deferring to his staff to issue statements or simply not responding.
Congress was on Thanksgiving break, but News Editor Roger Schneider suggested that video journalist Mike Householder and reporter Corey Williams drop by Conyersâ Detroit home. They knew it was a long shot â Corey and Mike had been to Conyersâ house before, and knew it was gated.
To their surprise, Conyers answered their ring.
Conyers answered a few questions, giving Williams and Householder a major beat: He denied settling sexual harassment claims and other allegations of inappropriate touching of staffers.
For aggressive reporting that paid off with an exclusive on one of the weekâs top stories, Williams and Householder share this weekâs Best of the States prize.
for their sensitive and detailed reporting in all formats on the sexual torture, branding and beatings of 52 Tamil men seeking asylum in Europe after fleeing Sri Lanka.http://bit.ly/2zNrvErhttps://www.apnews.com/tag/BrandedandBeaten
Donald Trump's public comments about women have been a familiar theme in the tumultuous presidential campaign. But what had he said behind the scenes on "The Apprentice," the TV show that made him a household name?
That's the question APâs Garance Burke set out to answer. Combining shoe-leather reporting with an adept use of social media, the San Francisco-based national investigative reporter tracked down more than 20 people willing to talk about the Republican nominee's language on the set. They recalled Trump making demeaning, crude and sexist comments toward and about female cast and crew members, and that he discussed which contestants he would like to have sex with.
for their searing look at the sexual abuse of young women and girls by UN peacekeepers in Congo and their quest for justice years later. Paisley Dodds, investigative reporter, London, Krista Larson, West Africa bureau chief, Dakar, Andy Drake, senior producer, Rabat, and Al-Hadji Kudra Maliro, reporter, Mavivi, Congo, for their searing look at the sexual abuse of young women and girls by UN peacekeepers in Congo and their quest for justice years later. http://bit.ly/2fwVk2I
for an inside look at how Illinois high school officials and police confronted an honor-roll student about recording and sharing sexual images in the hours before he took his own life. http://wapo.st/2hjtNm0
for finding out that Pope Francis had trimmed sanctions against a handful of pedophile priests who had sought his mercy, and that one case backfired so badly that the Vatican had to put the priest on trial for a second time. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20170225/news/3...
for reporting exclusively that a California inmate had become the first in the nation to receive state-funded sex reassignment surgery: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/apnewsbre...
Vatican correspondent Nicole Winfieldâs five-month investigation revealed the stunning allegations: A high-ranking Catholic priest had a sexual relationship with a Houston woman for more than a year, counseled her husband on their marital problems, pressed for hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations from the couple and continued to hear her confession.
But the cardinal overseeing the churchâs handling of sexual abuse allegations in the United States approved the priestâs transfer to a church two hours away.
The fallout from Winfieldâs revelations was swift: The priest was suspended and church officials reopened their inquiry into the handling of parishioner Laura Pontikesâ accusations.
To tell the sensitive story, Winfield â and a team that included Raleigh-based national writer/video journalist Allen Breed, New York global enterprise photographer Wong Maye-E and Houston correspondent Nomaan Merchant â meticulously planned coverage in each format, including on-camera interviews with Pontikes and her husband, and photos and video of the cardinal and the accused priest.
For an investigation that cast doubt on a top church officialâs handling of a case involving startling allegations of abuse, Winfield, Breed, Wong and Merchant wins APâs Best of the Week award.
As the ranks of dioceses promising to release lists of priests credibly accused of sexual abuse began to mushroom at the beginning of this year, Philadelphia reporter Claudia Lauer and Washington-based data editor Meghan Hoyer started to strategize: How could they leverage the information on a scale never before accomplished?
After months of systematic, dogged work, the result was âWhere Are They Now,â a blockbuster investigation that found almost 1,700 priests and other clergy members living with little to no oversight, many with positions giving them access to children. Dozens have committed crimes, including sexual assault.
The story received exceptional play online and in print, and AP Managing Editor Brian Carovillano called it, âOne of the most monumental pieces of AP journalism in my memory.â
For a stunning investigation that breaks new ground in the already impressive body of work that is âThe Reckoningâ series, Lauer and Hoyer win this weekâs Best of the States award.
New York-based federal law enforcement reporter Jim Mustian never gives up on a story.
Sticking with a case he began covering at another news organization in another state more than two years ago, Mustian landed a jaw-dropping exclusive for the AP: That a trove of hundreds of confidential emails has surfaced allegedly showing executives of the NFLâs New Orleans Saints doing public relations damage control for the areaâs Roman Catholic archdiocese amid its clergy sexual abuse crisis.
The story had an immediate, visceral impact with readers and earned praise from fellow journalists.
Mustian will continue to chip away at this story and, hopefully, reveal more about the Saints and their involvement with the church. But for now, Mustianâs sticktoitiveness and tough accountability reporting earns him this weekâs Best of the States award.
"The drug war is a game,â JosĂ© Irizarry told two AP reporters during his final moments of freedom. âIt was a very fun game that we were playing.â
Irizarryâs decision to spend some of his last few hours before beginning a 12-year federal prison sentence with two AP reporters in early 2022 was a moment years in the making that yielded a bombshell bacchanal of a story -- itself months in the making.
Four years ago, just before starting at The Associated Press, New York-based investigative reporter Jim Mustian received a tip about a DEA investigation into one of the agencyâs own agents in Colombia. That spiraled into a string of AP scoops by Mustian and Miami-based Latin America correspondent Joshua Goodman on DEA corruption in Latin America, including an exclusive on the arrest of that agent. Irizarry had been accused of conspiring with Colombian drug cartels to divert millions from DEA money laundering stings in what prosecutors called one of the worst betrayals in DEA history.
For a deeply reported and compelling investigation, telling the tale of a former war-on-drugs warrior who crossed multiple boundaries, Mustian and Goodman earn APâs Best of the Week â First Winner honors.
Comedian Bill Cosby had been in a Pennsylvania prison for more than two years last December when the stateâs high court took on his appeal of his sexual assault conviction.
As seven months went by without a decision, Philadelphia-based legal affairs reporter Maryclaire Dale â who had been instrumental in breaking the original Cosby story â thought there might be something newsy in the works. Her instincts led to deep preparation that put AP ahead on one of the biggest news stories of the summer, one that almost no one but Dale had anticipated.
When the court tweeted out its opinion Wednesday, APâs news alert moved within minutes, followed less than one minute later with a short breaking news story that Cosby's conviction was overturned, and that he would be released from prison. Both alerts beat all the competition; a full story moved less than two minutes later. Dale and colleagues followed up with full coverage throughout the day, with Cosby later appearing before cameras at his home, as the original news story drew heavy engagement online and maintained the top spot in Googleâs news carousel.
For sharp anticipation and flawless execution that put AP ahead on a story that dominated the news cycle, Dale earns APâs Best of the Week award.
After Maggie Michael, Nariman El-Mofty and Maad al-Zekri followed Ethiopian migrants across Djibouti and Yemen, they worked with the digital storytelling desk to deliver an all-formats package that hooked readers from the start, weaving together the differing fates of two migrants â one who succeeded in his epic walk to Saudi Arabia, the other who failed, left stranded and hopeless along the way.
The story demonstrated the scope of the APâs reach, covering a little-noticed but rapidly growing route for migrants, exploring what motivates these men and women to risk their lives, and making readers care about people to whom they would not otherwise have been introduced.
The package, produced and packaged by Natalie Castañeda and Peter Hamlin, showcased how APâs formats can work seamlessly together â from reporting on the ground to digital production â with dazzling results.
For stunningly beautiful work that took APâs audience on the migrantsâ journey from the sun-blasted wastelands of Djibouti to the shores of the Gulf of Aden and beyond, Michael, El-Mofty, al-Zekri, Castañeda and Hamlin win APâs Best of the Week honors.
David Crary heard from his legal sources that something big was coming for the Boy Scouts of America, which has been besieged by sexual abuse lawsuits: a bankruptcy filing.
Weeks before the paperwork was filed, Crary, who has been covering the organization for 20 years, set into motion plans to ensure the AP was well-covered. When the Scoutsâ filing finally came out late on a holiday, his sharply written prep had the story on the wire within minutes, explaining the gravity of the filing and the reasons behind it.
AP journalists around the country pitched in, including Brady McCombs who gathered reaction from Scouts and local councils, spinning it into an engaging follow-up, and correspondent Randall Chase who attended the Scoutsâ first bankruptcy hearing in a Delaware court. Their efforts were rewarded with outstanding play.
For their careful planning and flawless execution of coverage of the Scoutsâ bankruptcy filing, Crary, McCombs and Chase win this weekâs Best of the States award.
for revealing that despite mandated reforms, the Pentagon still struggles to provide justice when the children of service members sexually assault each other. Acting on a tip to Dunklin, their story describes the case of a 13-year-old boy accused of molesting at least 10 younger children on a U.S. Air Force base in Japan. The girlsâ mothers say Air Force officials showed little urgency to offer counseling or investigate. âHow is this OK?â asked a mother who locked her kids indoors. https://bit.ly/2XZXbSf
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.
In a classic case of keeping an open mind during reporting, APâs Jim Mustian and Kim Chandler started out reporting one story, but found themselves reporting exclusively that an Alabama state trooper, arrested on charges he raped an 11-year-old girl, had used a forged letter and lied on his application to get hired after being removed from the FBI — also on serious allegations of sexual misconduct.
To federal law enforcement reporter Mustian, this initially appeared as yet another case of the FBI allowing an accused agent to quietly move on with his career. But just as he was about to publish, the FBI said the bureau letter Christopher Bauer submitted to Alabama authorities when he was hired was ânot legitimate.â Meanwhile, Chandler, Montgomery statehouse reporter, tracked down Bauerâs application for the trooper job, in which he said he was still employed by the FBI and had never been forced to resign because of disciplinary action.
This had become the story of a former agent, and perhaps others, falsifying his record. The piece was among the weekâs top stories on AP News, with nearly 200,000 pageviews.
For deep reporting that followed the story wherever it took them, Mustian and Chandler earn this weekâs Best of the States award.
followed up with the latest developments from his 2019 reporting that uncovered sexual assault by clergy, settled on the cheap in rural Missisippi. That reporting has now prompted sexual assault charges against a former Catholic priest.A year ago, Rezendes and AP colleagues unraveled the case of a former Franciscan friar accused of sexually assaulting three impoverished Black boys. Spurred by this reporting, Mississippi authorities convened a grand jury that handed up sexual battery charges and had the man extradited from Wisconsin. Without the original work of Rezendes, there would have been no criminal case. Said La Jarvis Love, one of the men who told his story to AP: âIâm happy that me saying something got something done.âhttps://bit.ly/3m7ZShhhttps://bit.ly/2FnUUMm
