The Society of Environmental Journalists has announced the winners of its Annual Awards for Reporting on the Environment, and several have rural resonance.
"Polluted by Money" by Rob Davis, Beth Nakamura, Teresa Mahoney, Mark Friesen and Steve Suo for The Oregonian won second place for investigative reporting in smaller markets. "The Oregonian team's exposé on how the lack of campaign-funding regulation affected environmental policies in one of the greenest states in America was comprehensive and beautifully crafted," the judges wrote. "To connect campaign funding and its impact on the environment is not an easy task, but this project executed well with the use of documents, data and easily accessible anecdotes."
"Tire Failure," a series about lax regulation leading to "mountains of mosquito-infested, flammable tires in South Carolina," won an honorable mention for The Post and Courier of Charleston. "This story demonstrates the importance of local watchdog journalism to hold the powerful accountable by nailing the bureaucracy that affects communities," the judges wrote. (Lindsay Fendt of World Politics Review won first place for reporting on anti-mining activists in the Philippines.)
For explanatory reporting, first place went to "Ocean Shock" by Maurice Tamman, Matthew Green, Mari Saito, Sarah Slobin and Maryanne Murray of Reuters, "a breathtakingly comprehensive look at the many factors that are harming our seas," the judges wrote.
"Polluted by Money" by Rob Davis, Beth Nakamura, Teresa Mahoney, Mark Friesen and Steve Suo for The Oregonian won second place for investigative reporting in smaller markets. "The Oregonian team's exposé on how the lack of campaign-funding regulation affected environmental policies in one of the greenest states in America was comprehensive and beautifully crafted," the judges wrote. "To connect campaign funding and its impact on the environment is not an easy task, but this project executed well with the use of documents, data and easily accessible anecdotes."
"Tire Failure," a series about lax regulation leading to "mountains of mosquito-infested, flammable tires in South Carolina," won an honorable mention for The Post and Courier of Charleston. "This story demonstrates the importance of local watchdog journalism to hold the powerful accountable by nailing the bureaucracy that affects communities," the judges wrote. (Lindsay Fendt of World Politics Review won first place for reporting on anti-mining activists in the Philippines.)
For explanatory reporting, first place went to "Ocean Shock" by Maurice Tamman, Matthew Green, Mari Saito, Sarah Slobin and Maryanne Murray of Reuters, "a breathtakingly comprehensive look at the many factors that are harming our seas," the judges wrote.
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| Oil and gas production in the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico was the focus of one honored project. |
Second place in explanatory reporting went to "Blowout: Inside America's Energy Gamble" by the Center for Public Integrity, The Texas Tribune, Newsy and The Associated Press. The judges called it "a compelling series that probes the environmental and climate health effects of the country's biggest oil and natural-gas production boom in West Texas and part of New Mexico."
In a departure that some journalists may find jarring, first place for beat reporting in large markets went to David Roberts of Vox, whose package included stories with headlines that made clear the pieces were written from an unapologetic point of view, such as "What Genuine, No-bullshit Ambition on Climate Change Would Look Like" and "Why Conservatives Keep Gaslighting the Nation About Climate Change." The judges wrote, "Roberts deftly combines sharp commentary with strong reporting on climate change." Sarah Bowman of The Indianapolis Star won an honorable mention in the category for a beat package that included stories about contaminated water in Franklin, Ind., and its connection to cancer cases and deaths.
The small-market prize for beat reporting went to Alex Kuffner of The Providence Journal for a package that included this story: "Has Rhode Island Starved Its Watchdog?" The judges called his reporting "a model for small-market journalists covering an environmental beat." Honorable mentions went to Luke Runyon of KUNC for reporting on the Colorado River basin, Kristina Marusic of Environmental Health News for reports on air pollution in Western Pennsylvania and Angus Thuermer of WyoFile for "Wyoming's Challenged Landscape."
A complete list of winners, with links to their work, is here. It also includes judges and credentials. SEJ says its contest "is the world’s largest and most comprehensive environmental journalism competition, recognizing the best news coverage of the most important stories on the planet." the awards will be presented Oct. 12 at SEJ’s 29th annual conference in Fort Collins, Colorado.
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