for documenting the high number of mass graves that the Islamic State group is responsible for, through interviews with witnesses, mass grave officials, NGOs and activists, and satellite photos. http://bit.ly/2clBkkZ http://trib.in/2cojfDv http://bit.ly/2cFTY6H
used exhaustive data gathering and analysis, as well as interviews with experts and authorities across the country, to produce an exclusive, first-ever count that shows U.S. states barely using the much-touted âred flagâ laws that give them the power to take guns away from people who threaten to kill. The trend is traced to lack of awareness of the laws and outright resistance by some police to enforce them, even as shootings and gun deaths soar.Condonâs deeply reported story adds data and clarity to the debate over red flag laws, which are promoted as the most powerful tools available to prevent gun violence before it happens. But as the piece shows, such laws are only useful if they are actually enforced.Read more
When a 19-year-old legislative intern reported that a state lawmaker in Idaho raped her, she almost immediately faced a campaign of harassment from right-wing groups in the state, and even from other state representatives, who publicized her identity against her will. A legislative panel then forced her to testify from behind a screen at an ethics hearing, after which she was followed and subjected to still further abuse by the accused lawmakerâs supporters.
The sordid story of the young womanâs ordeal was covered with sensitivity by Boise correspondent Rebecca Boone in a series of pieces that included an exclusive interview with the alleged victim, and it prompted a wider look by APâs State Government Team at allegations of sexual misconduct in statehouses around the country. That story, led by correspondent David Lieb and Report for America data journalist Camille Fassett, provided state-by-state details to AP customers and revealed public allegations against at least 109 state lawmakers in 40 states.
For aggressive yet respectful coverage that put one womanâs voice at the center of the story while providing distinctive national context, Boone, Lieb and Fassett share this weekâs Best of the States award.
for their Health and Science accountability data project that revealed how millions is being spent to fight the opioid crisis. The AP analysis of FOIA records found that states with expanded Medicaid under âObamacareâ spent the funding more slowly than states that didnât expand the health insurance program because the Medicaid already covers nearly everyone who is poor and needs treatment for addiction. https://bit.ly/2yVcqRm
teamed up to tally total opioid settlements in the U.S., then used the onset of that spending to anchor a story around families and others seeking a voice in how the money is used.State government reporter Mulvihill worked with data reporter Harjai to arrive at total settlements â proposed and finalized â of more than $40 billion so far, breaking it down by state. Mulvihill and Ohio reporter Hendrickson then sensitively interviewed advocates and affected loved ones on the front lines of loss, delivering a forward-looking story on how the settlement money might be spent and who gets a say in those decisions.Read more
The AP team of Bernard Condon, Matt Sedensky and Carla K. Johnson assembled the most detailed national look yet at one of the most vexing snags in the coronavirus vaccine rollout: Surprising numbers of health care workers — who have seen firsthand the misery inflicted by COVID-19 — are refusing the shots.
The deep reporting, with contributions from colleagues across the country, found the paradox occurring in nursing homes and hospitals, with some individual facilities seeing a refusal rate as high as 80%. The story, one of APâs most-read on an extremely busy news week, quoted both health workers expressing fears of vaccine side effects and frustrated facility administrators.
For bringing to light an important part of the stumbling early rollout of the much-anticipated vaccine, Condon, Sedensky and Johnson win this weekâs Best of the States award.
reported exclusively on a string of racial slurs used by Louisiana State Police troopers, both in their official emails and spoken on the job, refuting the contention of the agencyâs superintendent that the use of such demeaning language was just âisolated.âMustian reviewed hundreds of police records and found at least a dozen instances over a three-year period in which employees forwarded racist emails or demeaned minority colleagues with racist nicknames. He also exclusively obtained documents of an accidental âpocket-dialâ of sorts in which a white trooper sent a voice mail to a Black trooper that blurted out his name and then a vile racist slur. The state police superintendent made an abrupt retirement announcement in the midst of Mustianâs reporting, which follows weeks of his coverage on the still-unexplained death of Ronald Greene, a Black motorist taken into custody last year following a police chase. Reeves faced criticism for his secretive handling of the case, including the refusal to release body-cam video that, according to those who have seen it, shows troopers beating, choking and dragging Greene. The case is now the subject of a federal civil rights investigation. Mustianâs story on the racial slurs received strong play, including on the front page of New Orleansâ Times-Picayune/Advocate. https://bit.ly/34VHCkp
for breaking the news that Iowa State University president Steven Leath had traveled more frequently than he claimed on the schoolâs planes and used them to take relatives and friends with him on trips, possibly in violation of ISU and state regulations. http://dmreg.co/2dtlWRj
On the news-heavy weekend between impeachment and inauguration, Lolita Baldor broke a story that became the dominant item for news organizations across platforms: Top military officials feared insider attacks from National Guardsmen activated to protect the inauguration, prompting the FBI to vet all 25,000 troops sent to the city.
And officials werenât whispering their concerns anonymously; Baldor quoted the Secretary of the Army, Ryan McCarthy. That was no fluke; Baldor has built trust with McCarthy and other top officials at the Pentagon. The Army granted her exclusive, off-the-record access to an inaugural planning session, then arranged on-the-record interviews with a number of leaders.
Baldorâs scoop immediately lit up social media and was picked up by some 330 news outlets, including networks and major publications.
For impressive source work that produced a major scoop in the intensive buildup to the inauguration, Baldor wins APâs Best of the Week award.
turned a routine feature into a news-breaking story by successfully pressing ABC to address Native American groupsâ criticism that its show âBig Skyâ failed to acknowledge the problem of missing and abused women on native land. Few outlets had reported on it, and none had gotten a response from ABC.Elber spoke to native groups and pressed ABC, but was repeatedly told the network would have no response. But just before filing her story, Elber received a statement from ABC acknowledging the concerns and vowing to work with native groups to rectify them. The network gave the AP a dayâs beat on all other outlets, and that nightâs âBig Skyâ episode carried for the first time a message about missing women and exploited children. https://bit.ly/39TR0YU
The U.S. surpassed a solemn milestone on Feb. 22 with 500,000 COVID-19 deaths — a moment in the pandemic that required thoughtful planning and storytelling, and precise execution across the AP for the coverage to stand out.
Editors began planning weeks in advance. They wanted impactful photo and video packages, lightning-fast spot coverage of the milestone being reached, and a text story to anchor the report that was different from APâs previous recognition of 100,000, 250,000 and 400,000 deaths.
The result was a package that resonated in all formats.
For meeting the grim milestone with compelling, comprehensive coverage, the team of Adam Geller, Jocelyn Gecker, Alyssa Goodman, Pete Brown, Eugene Garcia, Manuel Valdes and Krysta Fauria wins this weekâs Best of the States award.
used APâs exclusive access to the first district-by-district breakdown of pandemic test scores to report on massive learning setbacks during the pandemic.The pair, both members of APâs Education team, previewed their analysis for AP members who could tailor their stories for local and statewide audiences â it was precisely that reach into local newsrooms around the U.S. that led researchers to share their data exclusively with AP.Luryeâs analysis required tremendous speed and accuracy, as data was delayed or updated on deadline. And Toness incisively summarized the national implications of the data: the scope of the pandemicâs disruption in kidsâ lives, from the shortcomings of online learning to the trauma many American kids lived through, especially poor children.Read more
documented that six months into the war in Ukraine, U.S. companies continue to import billions of dollars worth of Russian goods despite tough talk by the Biden administration about cutting Russia off from global markets.Working with data journalist Larry Fenn, the investigative reporters combed through thousands of records tracking every shipment coming from Russia, revealing a complex patchwork of sanctions that has allowed millions of tons of Russian goods to flow into the U.S. legally. The resulting story countered common perceptions of the sanctions against Russia and was played widely, engaging readers.Read more
for an exclusive story saying Maryland's prison system would change procedures for notifying victims about inmate deaths. http://bit.ly/2dn6DKa
for an AP analysis that finds that many state lawmakers accused of sexual misconduct in the #MeToo era are having success running for re-election or new legislative seats, suggesting that voters are conflicted about whether personal failings should disqualify someone from public office.http://bit.ly/2LusUVKhttp://bit.ly/2zMesHf
Mulvihill broke the news that a record number of women had won their races for state legislative seats around the country, and Lieb gave a clear analysis of the results of gerrymandering in Pennsylvania and North Carolina.http://bit.ly/2RUzzLGhttp://bit.ly/2DNC4fB
The threat over her phone to Army wife Angela Ricketts was terrifying. âDear Angela!â it said. âBloody Valentineâs Day!â
âWe know everything about you, your husband and your children,â it continued, claiming that Islamic State militants had penetrated her computer. âWeâre much closer than you can even imagine.â
More than three years after Ricketts and four other military wives received this and other alarming messages, AP London-based cybersecurity reporter Raphael Satter unraveled the secret behind it all. Satter drew on a massive hit list of Russian hacking targets, focusing on a group of five women whose names were clustered together on the list. All reported having received death threats from a mysterious group calling itself CyberCaliphate back in 2015.
The threats were not from Middle Eastern terrorists at all, but hackers from the Russian group widely dubbed Fancy Bear â the same gang who later broke into the Democratic Partyâs emails and interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
For revealing the latest wrinkle in the Russian hacking story, Satter earns the Beat of the Week.
for an AP survey of all 50 states that revealed that very few state systems had an election security review from the Department of Homeland Security, even though many have asked for it amid concerns about Russian meddling in this yearâs election. http://bit.ly/2rmi8b4
spent weeks finding and reporting on real people across the country affected by the trickle-down effects of a shortage of police offers.Instead of focusing solely on the police, whose ranks are thinning because of burnout and other issues, Portland, Oregon-Based Flaccus, working with photographer Mitchelldyer, gave voice to the parents of a cold-case victim whose case was pushed aside because of rising gun homicides.In Philadelphia, Lauer and photographer Rourke showed how complaints have swelled over abandoned cars and other quality-of-life issues in low-income areas. And in Los Angeles, Dazio, video journalist Garcia and photographer Dovarganes found the problem has deeply impacted police homeless outreach.Read more
spent hundreds of hours with the Yeshiva University basketball team as APâs religion team looked at how Yeshiva navigates the world of college athletics while facing misperceptions of who they are as Jews â and even outright anti-Semitism, sometimes on the court. The New York-based trio delivered a deeply reported all-formats package as the Maccabees went on a historic run and won their conference championship. AP was there for the games, but also for classes, meals, family time, dorm time and a wedding. The relationship and trust built with the team became even more valuable as the team endures a new challenge: A Yeshiva student, not on the team, tested positive for the coronavirus, causing the team to be banned from a Baltimore hotel.https://bit.ly/2TMEulBhttps://bit.ly/3aOhckThttps://bit.ly/2U1DcSzhttps://bit.ly/3cVdIio
