for a clean scoop on the introduction of federal gambling legislation in the U.S. Senate after a Supreme Court ruling that states could allow sports gambling. https://bit.ly/2Sb04gm
The vividly told AP story of an 81-year-old manâs quest to remain in an isolated New Hampshire cabin hooked readers around the world, led to an outpouring of support and eventually prompted the man to reconsider his hermit lifestyle.
Reporter Kathy McCormack had begun by looking into a legal fight involving David Lidstone, a spritely man known locally as âRiver Dave.â Heâd been living peacefully in a makeshift home for 27 years when the property owner moved to evict him. Lidstone refused to leave and was jailed in July; while he was in jail, his cabin burned to the ground.
McCormackâs reporting turned Lidstoneâs difficulties into a powerful story, fleshing out the details of his life and the local efforts to help him stay put. The piece was an immediate hit, ultimately capturing more than a half million pageviews on AP News, making it the siteâs most popular story of the week. McCormack and colleagues followed up with subsequent developments, including the groundswell of international attention Lidstone received and his move away from the reclusive life.
For bringing this engaging story to life and her persistence in following it through, McCormack wins APâs Best of the Week award.
An AP Best of States mention in February about the hundreds of companies avoiding President Donald Trumpâs steel tariffs raised questions about Trumpâs $12 billion aid package to farmers hurt by the tariffs. What happened next shows how states can produce sharp, data-driven journalism â simply by calling on the data team for help.
AP filed Freedom of Information Act requests for U.S. Department of Agriculture data that was analyzed by Balint Szalai, a Hungarian investigative reporter embedded with APâs data team, and Washington data team intern Riin Aljas.
Among their findings: Many big farming operations were legally collecting far more than the supposed caps on aid.
Meanwhile, Minneapolis reporter Steve Karnowski spoke to longtime USDA critics and interviewed farmers who defended taking the big checks, saying they didnât even cover their losses under Trumpâs trade war.
The Only-on-AP story ran on dozens of sites, and because the data and analysis were released to AP members in advance, many chose to localize their stories.
For sophisticated data analysis and on-the-ground reporting that shed light on a key consequences of trade policy, Karnowski, Szalai and Aljas share this weekâs Best of the States award.
After last year's deadly wildfires in California brought weeks of sooty skies to cities along the West Coast, the AP decided to take a closer look into the broader impacts of the massive smoke plumes.
Billings, Montana, correspondent and environment team member Matthew Brown teamed with Denver video journalist P. Solomon Banda to produce an all-formats report on the growing public health threat from wildfire smoke. Their work grew from a body of research that points to where smoke impacts will be worst â a broad swath of the West that includes more than 300 counties with tens of millions of people.
For diligent reporting that provided a deeper look into how wildfires affect communities throughout the region, Brown and Banda earn this weekâs Best of the States award.
Law enforcement reporters Jim Mustian and Jake Bleiberg built on their previous reporting to document a devastating pattern of violence and secrecy at the Louisiana State Police, identifying at least a dozen beating cases over the past decade in which troopers or their bosses ignored or concealed evidence, deflected blame and impeded efforts to root out misconduct.
Their exclusive investigation stems from the deadly 2019 arrest of Ronald Greene â initially blamed on a car crash. That case was blown open this spring when the AP published long-withheld video showing state troopers stunning, punching and dragging the Black motorist as he pleaded for mercy. Mustian and Bleiberg proceeded to scour investigative records and work sources, finding a disproportionate use of force against Louisianaâs Black population and an absence of transparency and accountability in the agency.
Impact from this latest story was swift, from the head of the state police to a Louisiana congressman and others calling for investigation and reform.
For dogged reporting that peeled back the layers of case after case to reveal a pattern of abuse â and is effecting change in Louisiana â Mustian and Bleiberg earn APâs Best of the Week â First Winner.
When police busted several massage parlors engaging in prostitution in Florida in February, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft drew all the attention, but hundreds of other men were also charged in what seemed like a new approach for Florida authorities.
AP Florida reporters Mike Schneider, Orlando, and Terry Spencer, West Palm Beach, seized on the Kraft-driven attention to dig into legal issues surrounding massage parlors and prostitution in Florida. With a deep dive into state records and a key interview with a local source, the pair landed an AP Exclusive that showed a change in strategy: Usually only low-level massage therapists were arrested. Owners were rarely charged and typically faced only fines and probation. Johns typically were not charged at all.
But the recent investigation had instead focused heavily on the possibility of widespread human trafficking. Several spa owners were charged with felonies, and authorities also charged 300 men accused of being patrons, including Kraft and the former president of Citigroup. The Martin County sheriff told Spencer that he wanted to shut down the sex-massage industry in part by targeting the demand side.
Strong play included prominent display in The Washington Post.
For their enterprising use of state records and source-building to find an AP Exclusive in a story that drew enormous global attention, Schneider and Spencer win this weekâs Best of States award.
Homeland Security reporter Colleen Long and White House reporter Jill Colvin have repeatedly put the AP ahead on immigration coverage, but they outdid themselves during an intensely competitive week on the topic.
With President Donald Trump stepping up his threats to shut down the border amid a record surge of migrant families coming to the country, the pair dove into their source reporting, scoring three major scoops by the end of the week:
â Long and Colvin were first to report that Trump was contemplating naming a âborder czarâ to oversee immigration issues at the border. â They broke the news that the White House had withdrawn the nomination of its pick to head Immigration and Customs Enforcement, one day before he was scheduled to travel to the border with Trump. The scoop was so far ahead, and the news so perplexing, some in the Trump administration assumed it was a mistake. â A few days later, they delivered a smart piece pulling together the various actions surrounding Trumpâs border troubles, suggesting that more personnel shakeups were expected. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen resigned the next day.
The stories all received wide play by major outlets, and the weekender on Trumpâs growing problem on the border scored in newspapers around the country, landing on the front page of Sunday papers in 20 states.
For their outstanding work to break multiple stories on a subject that dominated the news cycle, Long and Colvin win APâs Best of the Week.
for reporting that Greyhound will stop allowing Border Patrol agents without a warrant to board its buses for routine immigration checks. The announcement by the nationsâs largest bus company came a week after the Johnson reported on a leaked Border Patrol memo confirming that agents canât board private buses without the consent of the bus company. Greyhound had previously insisted that even though it didnât like the immigration checks, it had no choice under federal law but to allow them. https://bit.ly/2VDpTKH
for following up on weeks of groundbreaking coverage on the 2020 U.S. Census with an offbeat story that was hiding in plain sight: the fact that everyone will have to identify the head of the household when they fill out the form.Anyone else who lives in the home has to be identified by how they are related to so-called âPerson 1â â which is sure to spark some intriguing conversations. https://bit.ly/2wbGXg8
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 being first to report that acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker made a glaring error when he told an audience of law enforcement officials that a terrorist who set off bombs in New York City and New Jersey had two co-conspirators overseas and that one was in custody. They checked it out and found none of it was true. The Justice Department was forced to issue a correction and the reference to Rahimi having co-conspirators was taken out of a transcript posted on the Justice Department website. https://bit.ly/2DS1k3r
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.
conducted extensive research and reporting on the high stakes of a near-final Trump administration plan to scrap criminal enforcement of the century-old Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which former top wildlife officials fear will devastate American bird populations already in extreme decline. A former director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service warned that without criminal penalties billions of wild birds could be killed in coming decades. The piece, well-illustrated with staff and member photos, received wide play. https://bit.ly/3e3Tp2T
When Chicago police released the body camera video of an officer fatally shooting a 13-year-old boy in an alley, AP staffers in Chicago and across the AP sprang into action with aggressive reporting, sharp enterprise follow-ups and thoughtful standards discussions about how to responsibly portray the gruesome incident for photo and video clients.
The end result was three days of distinctive spot and enterprise coverage on a story that resonated with audiences around the world, especially with renewed focus on police violence in the midst of the Derek Chauvin murder trial.
For comprehensive coverage providing depth, detail and context on the shooting, the all-formats team of Michael Tarm, Don Babwin, Sara Burnett, Kat Stafford, Dave Bauder, Shafkat Anowar, Robert Bumsted and Derek Karikari shares this weekâs Best of the States award.
On the edge of America, the U.S. Census started in a tiny Alaska town on the Bering Sea. Toksook Bay, population 661, is only reachable by plane, and isnât an easy place to live, much less report. The temperatures hover around zero, and daylight is scarce this time of year.
After months of planning, Alaska news editor Mark Thiessen and San Diego photographer Greg Bull spent four days in the remote community, getting rare access to day-to-day life and an interview with the person who would be the first counted, 90-year-old Lizzie Chimiugak.
And when the Census director finally arrived, delayed by bad weather that kept many other news organizations away, Thiessen and Bull were able to quickly file the spot news that Census 2020 had begun.
For overcoming myriad technical obstacles and very cold fingers to cover the news in a far-flung part of the country, while also providing a window into a world unlike any other place in the U.S., Thiessen and Bull win this weekâs Best of the States award.
As the western U.S. finds itself in the grips of one of the worst droughts in recent history, the AP West region staff has delved into every aspect of the droughtâs impact across the region. In one of the hardest-hit areas, the Salt Lake City-based team of Rick Bowmer, Lindsay Whitehurst and Brady McCombs documented that Utahâs Great Salt Lake may be headed to the lowest water levels in 170 years.
Reporting ahead of other news outlets, they delivered an all-formats package with stunning visuals showing readers how the dying lake is impacting people and wildlife and is a harbinger of worrisome drought-related consequences ahead. Decades of drought and water diversion in the booming region have hurt bird habitats, forced boats from shallow water and exposed dry lakebed that could send arsenic-laced dust into the air that millions breathe.
The result was a compelling package that had the highest engagement of all AP stories on July 6 and fourth-most for the week.
For distinctive work that expands APâs ongoing coverage of climate and drought in the West, the team of Bowmer, Whitehurst and McCombs wins this weekâs Best of the States award.
found a way to take readers beyond the eye-glazing phrase âsupply chain economicsâ by illustrating the current U.S. economy â the reasons behind its strengths and vulnerabilities â through the very relatable lens of patio furniture shortages.The story angle grew from a shopping trip with his wife to a couple of stores to look for a flowerpot. Boak, a White House reporter who specializes in the economy, noticed the paucity of patio furniture in the showrooms and began pulling up inflation reports. He then talked to managers at garden supply companies about their travails and emerged with a story that told the tale of the U.S. economy through this small slice of it. âThere is the paradox of the fastest growth in generations at more than 6% yet also persistent delays for anyone trying to buy furniture, autos and a wide mix of other goods,â he wrote.Boakâs story, anchored at a garden supply store in Cockeysville, Maryland, and accompanied by Julio Cortezâs photos, was among APâs top stories in pageviews for the day and continued to attract interest days later. https://aplink.news/cdy
As soon as the ground stopped violently shaking in Anchorage on the morning of Nov. 30, Anchorage newsman Dan Joling calmed his nerves and started reporting. Then, within minutes, he went from producing urgents to plotting out with Stephanie Mullen, the West regionâs deputy director of storytelling based in San Francisco, how AP would get the most compelling visuals at first light.
Already adept at capturing still photos, Joling would use a tool new to him, the live video streaming app Bambuser, to report on the damage from the two powerful back-to-back earthquakes centered just outside Alaskaâs biggest city.
Out in the field, Joling drove up to a vehicle stranded on a crumpled roadway, first using his iPhone to snap photos that he quickly sent to a photo editor. He then fired up the Bambuser app, a tool that he had been trained on exactly one month before.
The live footage he streamed was scooped up immediately by customers in the United States and Europe.
His quick thinking and improvisation put the AP far ahead of the competition and gave viewers and customers unmatched views of the quakesâ aftermath, earning him APâs Best of the Week honors.
AP Portland, Oregon, reporter Gillian Flaccus has long followed a simmering issue in the Klamath River Basin, a swath of rural agricultural land in Northern California and southern Oregon that is ground zero for the fight over an increasingly precious resource in the American West: water. Amid extreme drought in the region, the U.S. government has stopped irrigation to hundreds of farmers for the first time in history, while Native American tribes along the 257-mile Klamath River are watching fish species hover closer to extinction. The farmers face ruin and tribes worry their culture will vanish.Flaccus has developed deep sources with area farmers as well as tribal members and recently spent nearly a week in the remote area with freelance photographer Nathan Howard documenting an issue that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. Working with New York photo editor and digital storyteller Alyssa Goodman, they produced a sweeping, striking all-formats package that showed the pain on both sides as people begin to realize the water may not be coming back. The package was among APâs most-viewed stories for Friday. For immersive journalism that explores the human consequences of drought in the U.S. West, Flaccus, Howard and Goodman receive this weekâs Best of the States award.
gave voice to the intense emotion within communities of Catholic nuns that have experienced devastating losses from outbreaks of the coronavirus. The Felician Sisters alone lost 21 of their own from four U.S. convents, a remarkable blow for a community of about 450 women. This intimate look within the cloister showed the lasting effects of what the pandemic wrought â in this case, the most reverent found themselves questioning faith and how one might continue living when so many nuns didnât.After initial difficulty connecting with receptive sources, national writer Sedensky found Sister Mary Jeanine Morozowich in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, who had a level of introspection and eloquence that would help drive this story. That opened the doors to St. Anne Home in Greensburg. Sedensky and video journalist Wardarski, both compassionate listeners, encouraged the openness of the sisters, helping introduce the pair to others at the ministry. âBy the time Jessie and I paid a visit there, we were able to share moments and conversations with all of them,â Sedensky said. Along the way, a couple of sisters told him that they felt better after their conversations.The package, including Wardarskiâs poignant visuals, found a receptive audience. The AP pair received innumerable emails expressing how much the story moved readers. One was headlined: âMy tears flowed as I read your article.â Another said: âYour article about the loss of these beautiful women will stay with me always. ... You wrote it so beautifully and with such respect.âhttps://bit.ly/3g8vYsGhttps://bit.ly/3gdjJeh
