Thousands of deaths in the city of Baltimore to overdoses of fentanyl. A clever TikTok video about a New Jersey mall and a complex tax dispute. An unflinching accounting of Indian boarding schools and the brutality and sexual abuse inflicted upon Native American children. 

These are just several of the stories that won Poynter Journalism Prizes this year.

Poynter on Tuesday announced the winners and finalists of its 2025 journalism contest, aimed at spotlighting a wide range of outstanding reporting and writing from U.S. news organizations during 2024. Poynter president Neil Brown said the depth of reporting from this year’s winners was striking, reinforcing that good source work combined with good storytelling can improve communities. 

“While forces culturally and economically continue to pose big challenges to the journalism field, good reporting, editing and service to readers pushes through,” he added.

The contest’s most prestigious prize, the Batten Medal, which awards exceptional journalism that makes a difference to the lives of people and their communities, went to a skillfully reported ProPublica series about how restrictive abortion laws led to deaths that could have been prevented. 

The First Amendment Award went to the staff of “In the Dark,” Season 3, The New Yorker’s nine-part podcast series about the 2005 killings of 24 civilians in Haditha, Iraq, by U.S. Marines, driven by the question of why no one was held accountable for the crime. 

Capital B, the local-national nonprofit news organization dedicated to stories about the Black community, won the Robert G. McGruder Diversity Award, which recognizes the accomplishments of media professionals who encourage diversity in hiring and coverage. Capital B was launched in 2022. 

The Dori J. Maynard Justice Award, named after the late longtime champion for diverse perspectives in journalism, went to Dana Hedgpeth, Sari Horwitz and the staff of The Washington Post for an investigation of a year and a half that revealed the extent of sexual abuse inflicted on Native American children by Catholic priests, brothers and sisters in boarding schools.

The winners are a range of big newsrooms like The Washington Post and The Philadelphia Inquirer, and nonprofit newsrooms like CalMatters, which shared The Punch Sulzberger Prize for Journalism Innovation with CBS News California Investigates for a database aimed at filling reporting voids left in statehouses across the country.

Here are the 2025 Poynter Journalism Prize winners and finalists:

The Batten Medal

Awarded to Kavitha Surana, Cassandra Jaramillo and Lizzie Presser of ProPublica for Life of the Mother, an investigative series that exposed the devastating consequences of restrictive abortion laws since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Readers were introduced to Amber Thurman and Candi Miller, two Georgia women who died after they were unable to access legal abortions and timely medical care in their state.

Judges said the series from the Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom revealed for the first time the stories of women whose deaths could have been prevented. 

“Because of this reporting, Amber Thurman and Candi Miller’s names echoed nationally as voters were considering abortion laws in several states, sparking crucial conversations on reproductive rights,” their citation read. “‘Life of the Mother’ involved rigorous reporting, meticulous research, compelling storytelling and a deep commitment to public service. The impact of this work was broad and powerful: It proved, for the first time, how these laws have contributed to the deaths of multiple women in multiple states, in a variety of circumstances. Legislatures in at least seven states are this year considering expanded abortion access, with some of those proposed bills filed in direct response to ProPublica’s reporting.”

Surana, who joined ProPublica in 2022 as a national reporter, said her team is “so honored” to receive the Batten Medal and to be in the company of many of their journalism heroes. “To document the impact of state abortion laws, it took dedicated shoe-leather reporting and persistence past many challenges,” she said in an email. “Recognition like this motivates us to continue this reporting, and we are so incredibly grateful.”

Sponsored by editors from the former Knight Ridder, the Batten Medal recognizes exceptional journalism that makes a difference to the lives of people and their communities.

Finalists

• Qadri Inzamam and Megha Rajagopalan of The Fuller Project/The New York Times for The Brutality of Sugar 
• The staff of The Washington Post for Abused by the Badge

The Frank A. Blethen Award for Local Accountability Reporting

Awarded to Alissa Zhu, Jessica Gallagher, Nick Thieme of The Baltimore Banner, working with The New York Times Local Investigations Fellowship, for Baltimore’s Overdose Crisis — which detailed how the city of Baltimore saw nearly 6,000 lives lost to drug overdoses of fentanyl over a period of six years. Reporting for this spanned two years and hefty legal fights.

“The deep-dive and strong narrative storytelling was exemplary and offered readers an example of very powerful journalism,” the judges’ citation read, noting additional praise for its “one-of-a-kind dataset” with nine other media outlets.

Finalists

• The staff of KHOU-TV for Struck: Inside the Harris County Jail 
• A.J. Lagoe, Steve Eckert, and Gary Knox of KARE 11 for Recovery, Inc.

The Deborah Howell Award for Writing Excellence

Awarded to Sarah A. Topol, a freelance writer for The Deserter, a feature story of love and war through one soldier, which was published in The New York Times Magazine. Sponsored by Advance Publications, the award recognizes distinguished achievement in writing in any medium. 

Judges wrote that stories about the experience of Russian soldiers are so rare, and called the story an “immersive, novelistic tale” that sweeps readers along in a love story. They also said Topol’s story was one of survival “that also teaches us about Russian culture and its military.”

The Deserter is also available as a five-part audio feature, narrated by actor Liev Schreiber.

Topol is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine. She has reported from more than 40 countries around the world, according to her bio, and her work for the magazine has won a National Magazine Award for feature writing as well as an Overseas Press Club Award, among others.

Finalists

• Sarah Zhang of The Atlantic for After the Miracle
• Lizzie Presser of ProPublica for Maylia and Jack: A Story of Teens and Fentanyl

The Dori J. Maynard Justice Award

Awarded to Dana Hedgpeth, Sari Horwitz and the staff of The Washington Post for Indian Boarding Schools, an 18-month investigation into the sexual abuse of Native American children by Catholic priests, brothers and sisters in remote boarding schools — and the trauma and pain that lingers on for survivors.

“Dana and I and our whole team are thrilled to win this important award and be recognized by the Poynter Institute,” Horwitz said in an email Tuesday afternoon after the awards were announced. “We were honored to do this work and shed a light on this dark chapter of American history. And we are so grateful to the survivors of Indian boarding schools who trusted The Post and shared their stories with us.”

Sponsored by The O’Brien Fellowship in Public Service Journalism at Marquette University, the award recognizes reporting that shines a light on ignorance, stereotypes, intolerance, racism, hate, negligence, inequality and systemic obstacles. 

The Post reported that, from 1819 to 1969, tens of thousands of children were sent to more than 500 boarding schools across the country, the majority run or funded by the U.S. government. Their investigation found that at least 122 priests, sisters and brothers assigned to 22 boarding schools since the 1890s were later accused of sexually abusing Native American children under their care. 

Judges of this prize called this a series “that stays with you forever — haunting, beautifully done, searing, probing, important, with stunning findings and writing.”

Finalists

• The staff of The Washington Post for Abused by the Badge
• The staff of USA Today for Untested: America’s rape kit backlog was a national scandal. A decade later, problems persist.

The First Amendment Award

Awarded to the staff of The New Yorker behind The Killings in Haditha, Season 3 of the “In the Dark” podcast, an investigation detailing the story of one of the most high-profile war-crimes prosecutions in U.S. history — the killing of 24 Iraqi civilians by U.S. Marines — and the lack of accountability in the case. This award is given to the best example of protecting or advancing freedom of information principles, and/or overcoming significant resistance to the application of the First Amendment.

Supported by the Pulitzer Center, this nine-part series was a product of four years of reporting. The team behind it filed more than 700 FOIA requests and six lawsuits to tell this story, and located and interviewed 39 U.S. Marines who were involved — many of whom had never been interviewed.

Finalists

• Katey Rusch and Casey Smith of the San Francisco Chronicle for Right to Remain Secret  
• Zach Despart, Yuriko Schumacher and Uriel J. García of The Texas Tribune for Texas’ Fragmented, Remote Border Wall

The Burl Osborne Editorial and Opinion Award

Awarded to The Philadelphia Inquirer for The Trump Threat, a series of editorials that examined Donald Trump’s record, character and ambitions with unwavering focus. This award, sponsored by The Dallas Morning News, recognizes excellence in editorial writing that has made an impact on behalf of a community, resulting in change for the better.

In their citation, judges said the Inquirer’s editorials combined rigorous reporting with moral clarity to examine Trump’s record. “Though it didn’t change the election’s outcome, this work demonstrated that principled journalism can cut through corporate caution and speak truth to power,” the citation concluded.

Finalists

• The Boston Globe for Boston’s New School Crisis: Falling Enrollment
• The Virgin Islands Daily News for Can the Water and Power Authority Be Saved?

The Mike Royko Award for Commentary and Column Writing

Awarded to Steve Lopez of the Los Angeles Times for his columns about places and issues that demand more attention. The Chicago Tribune sponsors this award, which recognizes excellence in writing by an individual expressing a personal point of view.

Lopez, a California native and a Times columnist since 2001, is a keen observer of the communities around him. Dave Davies, guest host for NPR’s “Fresh Air” with Terry Gross, called him “a local institution.”

In one August 2024 column, Lopez detailed how an LA park has changed drastically from how restaurant owner Norm Langer remembers it from his childhood. “Not long ago I came upon a zombie-like scene of contorted people gathered in the northwest corner of the park, their bodies rigid from overdoses of fentanyl or other killer drugs,” Lopez wrote. “That’s two blocks away from Langer’s Deli, and I thought about him, and how disorienting it can be to grow old in a world unlike the one we remember or the one we imagined.”

A few months later, Lopez published a more concrete stance about the park and the sad realities surrounding it. The headline read: “The time for excuses is over. L.A.’s MacArthur Park needs a champion now.”

Judges for the Mike Royko Award for Commentary and Column Writing said Lopez’s columns illustrate “how a metro columnist can make a difference and force elected officials to pay attention to an issue in plain sight but long ignored.” 

“His work includes spectacular reporting and writing with a mix of perspective, empathy and outrage,” they added. “It’s powerful work in the name of a good old-fashioned cause — a neighborhood and its people.”

Finalists

• Gustavo Arellano of the Los Angeles Times for The ‘Latino Vote’ is a Myth
• Will Bunch of the Philadelphia Inquirer for A Selection of Columns by Will Bunch

The Punch Sulzberger Prize for Journalism Innovation

Awarded to Julie Watts, Ryan Sabalow, Foaad Khosmood, CalMatters and CBS News California Investigates for California’s Fentanyl Fight, a groundbreaking Digital Democracy database built by the nonprofit newsroom CalMatters through artificial intelligence and emerging technologies that in part fills a reporting void left in statehouses across the country. Sponsored by The New York Times, this award is given for work that exemplifies new ways of executing the craft of journalism that will engage audiences and expand the work’s impact and reach.

“The database collected information on millions of votes and hundreds of hours of hearings, allowing reporters to reveal hidden practices of California’s Democratic supermajority legislature,” the judges’ citation read.

One judge added: “You read these pieces and you feel smarter and better-equipped to execute your rights in a democracy.”

Some of what the tool does is track “every word spoken in public hearings, every dollar donated to politicians, every bill introduced, every vote cast and more,” according to the database’s homepage.

In an April 2024 “Inside the Newsroom” article, CalMatters co-founder  David Lesher, who led this initiative, said that as a journalist who has been watching the California state government for nearly 30 years, it was clear to him that the politicians and the decision-making process have become more opaque.

“The transparency created by Digital Democracy is about how the people we elect are weighing the special interests and the public interest when they make important decisions about our education, environment, health care, housing, transportation, prisons, taxes and more,” Lesher added.

Finalists

• Patricia Clarembaux, Federica Narancio and Esther Poveda of Univision Noticias Digital for Exposed: Latino Farmworkers Risk their Health Working Under Threat of Pesticide Exposure
• Prison Journalism Project and The Marshall Project for MadLib Journalism in Shed Light on How Excessive Summer Heat Was Experienced in U.S. Prisons

The Robert G. McGruder Diversity Award

Awarded to Capital B, a local-national nonprofit news organization dedicated to stories about how Black people experience America today.

“The journalists who started this newsroom in 2022 understood that the racial justice movement inspired by George Floyd’s murder would inevitably face setbacks and retrenchment,” the judges’ citation read. “They knew the traditional role of the Black press, telling stories that would otherwise go unreported. And they rose up to meet this moment.”

Judges said Capital B delivers stories around subjects like maternal health and Black farmers, and they are “righting wrongs,” like exposing an Atlanta housing development’s horrible disrepair. “They have done an impressive amount of work in a short period of time, and they’ve managed to represent the diversity of the Black experience.”

In a 2022 appearance on “Pod Save America,” Capital B co-founder Lauren Williams spoke about the year 2020, a difficult time that created a “powder keg” within her that begged many questions: “What am I doing? What is happening here? What is next for me?” She thought about herself as Black woman in a position of authority and privilege in a newsroom, which she described as relatively rare. She thought about the racial reckoning happening at the time in the journalism industry.

Williams said it occurred to her that she could take experiences, and those of co-founder Akoto Ofori-Atta, and put them toward something that was worth how hard everything was.

This award, sponsored by McClatchy Media, is for the accomplishments of media professionals who encourage diversity in hiring and coverage.

The Roy Peter Clark Prize for Excellence in Short Writing

Awarded to S.P. Sullivan of NJ Advance Media for Is the American Dream Mall ‘Open?’ An Investigation, a TikTok video investigation into the murkiness of a mall and whether it’s legally open.

“An investigative reporter goes shopping for jeans at a giant, controversial mall,” the judges’ citation read. “Years of questionable legal and tax behavior is presented in just 350 words and 90 seconds of Tik Tok quality video. Is the mall legally open? Or not? Is this the future of news telling for an audience we want to reach?”

Sponsored by the Poynter Institute, this prize is for compelling journalistic writing of less than 800 words in any medium. 

Finalists

• Shawn McCreesh of The New York Times for Campaign Notebooks
• Talya Zax of The Forward for Critical Arts Reviews
• The Washington Post for Capital Letters

About 40 journalists served on 10 category juries to nominate finalists for the prizes, and a 14-member Selection Board met earlier in April to choose the winners. In total, there were 10 winners and 19 finalists from digital news sites, nonprofit news organizations, newspapers, podcasts, broadcasts — and even a TikTok video. Winners will receive a cash prize of $2,500. The First Amendment Award brings with it a $1,000 prize.

Before the Poynter Institute became home to the Poynter Journalism Prizes in 2024, the awards were administered by the News Leaders Association.