WASHINGTON, D.C. – Finalists for the 2015 Online Journalism Awards, representing a wide range of nonprofit, public, academic, major media, and emerging technology organizations from around the globe, were announced today by the Online News Association.
Ten of the awards now come with $60,000 in prize money, courtesy of Knight Foundation, the Gannett Foundation and the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. These awards honor data journalism, visual digital storytelling, investigative journalism, public service, technical innovation and general excellence.
New categories for 2015 include “Sports” and “Pro-Am” within the Student awards. ONA also debuts the James Foley Award for Conflict Reporting, which will honor one of the many journalists reporting under the most challenging conditions. A special committee will select the first recipient later in the year.
“This year, judges were swayed less by bells and whistles that didn’t add to the content, and instead zeroed in on high-quality journalism that was able to take flight on digital platforms,” said Joshua Hatch, ONA Board member and Online Journalism Awards Committee Chair. “It goes to show what a democratic force technology has become to journalists around the world.”
A group of 134 industry-leading journalists and new media professionals teamed up to screen 994 entries and select semi-finalists. Fifteen judges representing a diverse cross-section of the industry then conferred to determine finalists and winners.
The winners will be announced at the 2015 ONA Conference and Online Journalism Awards Banquet on Saturday, Sept. 26, in Los Angeles.
The finalists, many pushing the envelope of innovation and excellence in digital storytelling and distribution, are:
KNIGHT AWARD FOR PUBLIC SERVICE
BBC WhatsApp Ebola News Service, BBC World Service, BBC News
Criminalizing Kids, The Center for Public Integrity with Reveal Radio
Losing Ground, ProPublica and The Lens
Till Death Do Us Part, The Post and Courier
GENERAL EXCELLENCE IN ONLINE JOURNALISM, SMALL
civilbeat.com, Honolulu Civil Beat
kbia.org, KBIA News
minnpost.com, MinnPost
texastribune.org, The Texas Tribune
GENERAL EXCELLENCE IN ONLINE JOURNALISM, MEDIUM
propublica.org, ProPublica
qz.com, Quartz
revealnews.org, The Center for Investigative Reporting
GENERAL EXCELLENCE IN ONLINE JOURNALISM, LARGE
BostonGlobe.com, The Boston Globe
lanacion.com.ar, LA NACIÓN (Argentina)
nytimes.com, The New York Times
washingtonpost.com, The Washington Post
GANNETT FOUNDATION AWARD FOR TECHNICAL INNOVATION IN THE SERVICE OF DIGITAL JOURNALISM
AI2HTML, The New York Times
Pulp: AJAM’s Open Source Comics Platform, Al Jazeera America Digital
Proximity Alerts, The Breaking News team
BREAKING NEWS, SMALL
Amtrak 188 Crash, Billy Penn
Charlie Hebdo Real-Time Coverage, reported.ly
BREAKING NEWS, MEDIUM
Baltimore Riots, Mashable
Baltimore Riots and the Freddy Gray Case, The Baltimore Sun Staff
Parliament Hill Siege, The Canadian Press
BREAKING NEWS, LARGE
AJAM’s Coverage of Amtrak Crash, Al Jazeera America Digital
The Death of Alberto Nisman, Redacción de Clarín
Germanwings, The New York Times
Ottawa Shooting, The Globe and Mail
Walter Scott, The Post and Courier, postandcourier.com
PLANNED NEWS/EVENTS, SMALL
No finalists
PLANNED NEWS/EVENTS, MEDIUM
Echoes from the Jungle, The Virginian-Pilot
#MakeAlCare — The Evolution of One Voter, KPCC, Southern California Public Radio
The Scar of the City, Berliner Morgenpost
PLANNED NEWS/EVENTS, LARGE
Election Party!, NPR Visuals
Midterm Election Coverage, Al Jazeera America Digital
Midterm Elections, The New York Times
The Norwegian Victims of WW2, Verdens Gang, Norway
The Senate Report on the CIA’s Interrogation Program, The Washington Post
EXPLANATORY REPORTING, SMALL
An Impossible Choice, inewsource
InfoGuide: The Sunni-Shia Divide, Council on Foreign Relations
The Long Reach of Childhood Trauma, The Connecticut Mirror, ctmirror.org
Undrinkable, The Texas Tribune
EXPLANATORY REPORTING, MEDIUM
The 45-Minute Mystery of Freddie Gray’s Death, The Baltimore Sun
Check 2016, Newsy, Newsy
Climate Change in Minnesota, MPR News
What Does Gun Violence Really Cost?, Mother Jones
EXPLANATORY REPORTING, LARGE
Bees at the Brink, Star Tribune
Drugging our Kids, San Jose Mercury News/Bay Area News Group
Ebola, The New York Times
Saving Cyla, The Globe and Mail
TOPICAL REPORTING, SMALL
The Broadband Industry Beat, The Center for Public Integrity
‘Dark Money’ in America, The Center for Public Integrity
Hurting for Work, The Texas Tribune
Nieman Journalism Lab, Nieman Journalism Lab
NHPR: Abuse And Neglect at Lakeview, NHPR
StateImpact Pennsylvania: Energy, Environment, Economy, StateImpact Pennsylvania
TOPICAL REPORTING, MEDIUM
Alcohol’s Hold on Campus, The Chronicle of Higher Education
The Broken Hip, KERA News
Retronaut: Time Travel Through Photography, Mashable
State of Health, KQED News
TOPICAL REPORTING, LARGE
Ebola Outbreak, NPR
The Future of Food, National Geographic
Vaccinations in L.A. County, Los Angeles Times
A Year of Legal Marijuana, The Denver Post
ONLINE COMMENTARY, SMALL
Dispatches From Syria: Marcell Shehwaro on Life in Aleppo, Global Voices
Informing Public Debate with Knowledge-Based Journalism, Alfred Hermida, Graduate School of Journalism, University of British Columbia
ONLINE COMMENTARY, MEDIUM
No finalists
ONLINE COMMENTARY, LARGE
Susie Cagle and Al Jazeera America Online Community, Susie Cagle & Al Jazeera America Digital
Transgender Today Community Page, The New York Times
Vox’s Todd VanDerWerff’s Cultural Criticism, Vox.com, Vox Media
FEATURE, SMALL
Disappearing Rio Grande, The Texas Tribune
The Martian Diaries: What If the Curiosity Rover Kept a Scrapbook?, Science News
You’re 16. You’re a Pedophile. You Don’t Want to Hurt Anyone. What Do You Do Now?, Matter
FEATURE, MEDIUM
Betrayed by Silence: The Investigation, MPR News
M29 — The Bus Route of Contrasts, Berliner Morgenpost
The NRA’s Murder Mystery, Mother Jones
Stickup Kid, FRONTLINE
FEATURE, LARGE
Beyond the Border, The Texas Observer and The Guardian US
Chasing Bayla, The Boston Globe
Kim’s Choice, The Globe and Mail
Passwords, The New York Times
Spain: 253 Billion Euros Under the Table, El Mundo
SPORTS, SMALL
No finalists
SPORTS, MEDIUM
Dynasty: UConn Women’s Basketball 10-Title Reign, Hartford Courant
Girls Fight Out, Taffy Brodesser-Akner for Matter
SPORTS, LARGE
Boston Globe Sports, The Boston Globe / BostonGlobe.com
Dawn Wall, The New York Times
The Mayweather vs. Pacquiao Fight, Los Angeles Times
World Cup, The New York Times
STUDENT PROJECTS, SMALL
Loud Austin – The Live Music Capital with a Loud Music Problem, School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Texas State University
Mobile Health: Apps for Every Age and Ouch, UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism
The Trails of Trash, Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism, University of Southern California
Wiped, Flashed, and Rekitted: The International Black Market of Stolen Cell Phones, UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism
STUDENT PROJECTS, LARGE
Counterfeit Ed, NYCity News Service
The Kenny “Zulu” Whitmore Case, The Medill Justice Project
The Missing, NYCity News Service Staff/CUNY Graduate School of Journalism
#WhatAreTheChances?, Journalism Broadcast Sheridan College
STUDENT PROJECTS, PRO-AM
Assault on Justice, WAMU88.5 News, Investigative Reporting Workshop and Reveal Project Teams
Gun Wars: A News21 Investigation of Rights and Regulations in America, Arizona State University, Walter Cronkite School of Journalism
Powering a Nation: Whole Hog, The Power of Pork, School of Media and Journalism, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
THE AL NEUHARTH INNOVATION IN INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM AWARD, SMALL
Profiting from Prisoners, The Center for Public Integrity
THE AL NEUHARTH INNOVATION IN INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM AWARD, MEDIUM
The Dark Side of the Strawberry, The Center for Investigative Reporting
Undue Force, The Baltimore Sun
Up in Flames, San Antonio Express-News
THE AL NEUHARTH INNOVATION IN INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM AWARD, LARGE
Evicted and Abandoned: The World Bank’s Broken Promise to the Poor, The Center for Public Integrity’s International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, The Huffington Post and Media Partners
Game of Chicken, The Oregonian/OregonLive.com
The Secret Casualties of Iraq’s Abandoned Chemical Weapons, The New York Times
Workers’ Comp, ProPublica and NPR
EXCELLENCE AND INNOVATION IN VISUAL DIGITAL STORYTELLING, SMALL
No finalists
EXCELLENCE AND INNOVATION IN VISUAL DIGITAL STORYTELLING, MEDIUM
Being 12, WNYC
Space Business, Quartz
EXCELLENCE AND INNOVATION IN VISUAL DIGITAL STORYTELLING, LARGE
A Global Guide to the First World War — Interactive Documentary, The Guardian and Kiln
Look At This, NPR
Markets & Finance Interactive Graphics, The Wall Street Journal
The N-Word, The Washington Post
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA AWARD IN INVESTIGATIVE DATA JOURNALISM, SMALL/MEDIUM
Ballot Watch, FRONTLINE
Trouble with Taxes, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Unsolved Homicides, Los Angeles News Group
Who’s Trying to Influence Your Vote?: Tracking TV Ad Wars in the 2014 Election, The Center for Public Integrity
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA AWARD IN INVESTIGATIVE DATA JOURNALISM, LARGE
Medicare Unmasked, The Wall Street Journal
Missed Signs, Fatal Consequences: How Texas Missed Deadly Patterns and Key Pieces of Information that Could Have Helped Protect Vulnerable Children, Austin American-Statesman
Stop and Seize, The Washington Post
Swiss Leaks: Murky Cash Sheltered by Bank Secrecy, The Center for Public Integrity’s International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Le Monde, The Guardian and 64 Media Partners
*The judges for the final round of awards were:
Kainaz Amaria, Supervising Editor, NPR Visuals
Florencia Coelho, Digital Research & Training Manager, LA NACIÓN (Argentina)
Amanda Cox, Graphics Editor, The New York Times
Jenn Crandall, Freelance Video Journalist
Amy Eisman, Director Media Entrepreneurship, American University
Rich Jaroslovsky, Vice President for Content, SmartNews, Inc.
Michelle Johnson, Associate Professor, Boston University Department of Journalism
Mitra Kalita, Managing Editor, The Los Angeles Times
Scott Klein, Assistant Managing Editor, ProPublica
Martin Kotynek, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Zeit Online
Rhyne Piggott, Senior Executive Producer, Multimedia, Al Jazeera America
Rhonda Prast, Assistant Managing Editor/Digital, The Kansas City Star
Scott Smallwood, Managing Editor, Chronicle of Higher Education
Mallary Tenore, Executive Director, IVOH Media
Jessica Yu, Global Head of Visuals, The Wall Street Journal
Launched in 2000, the OJAs are the only comprehensive set of journalism prizes honoring excellence in digital journalism.
*Judges were recused from discussing categories in which their own organizations were entered.
About ONA
The Online News Association is the world’s largest association of online journalists. ONA’s mission is to inspire innovation and excellence among journalists to better serve the public. The membership includes news writers, producers, designers, editors, bloggers, technologists, photographers, academics, students and others who produce and distribute news for digital delivery systems. ONA also hosts the annual Online News Association annual conference and administers the Online Journalism Awards.
About Knight Foundation
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts. The foundation believes that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged. For more, visit knightfoundation.org
About the Gannett Foundation
The Gannett Foundation is a corporate foundation sponsored by Gannett Co., Inc. whose mission is to invest in the future of the communities in which Gannett does business, and in the future of our industry. It supports projects that take a creative approach to fundamental issues such as education and neighborhood improvement, economic development, youth development, community problem-solving, assistance to disadvantaged people, environmental conservation and cultural enrichment.
About the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications
The University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications is driving innovation and engagement across the disciplines of advertising, journalism, public relations and telecommunication. The strength of its programs, faculty, students and alumni — in research and in practice — has earned the college ongoing recognition as one of the best in the nation among its peers. The college offers bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees and certificates, both online and on campus. The college’s strength is drawn from both academic rigor and experiential learning. CJC students have the opportunity to gain practical experience in the Innovation News Center, which generates content across multiple platforms, and a strategic communication agency with expertise in targeting messages to millennial audiences. The college includes seven broadcast and digital media properties and the nation’s only chair in public interest communications.
For more information, contact: The Online News Association at awards@journalists.org.