NEW YORK — On Monday, notable journalists received George Polk awards, which are esteemed honors within the field of journalism, recognizing their coverage of significant global conflict areas such as Israel, Sudan, Ukraine, and Haiti. Among the recipients was a grand-niece of the award’s original honoree.
Ronen Bergman and Mark Mazzetti from The New York Times Magazine were awarded the Foreign Reporting prize for their investigative work that shed light on the Israeli government’s compliance with and favoritism towards ultra-nationalist settlers, whose actions have severely impacted Palestinians residing in the West Bank.
The War Reporting prize went to Declan Walsh and his team at The New York Times. Their reporting on the Sudanese civil war revealed how the United Arab Emirates, along with others, had been secretly influencing the conflict to secure resources and power. This report prompted the UAE to suspend some operations in the war-torn country.
Sarah A. Topol of The New York Times Magazine was honored with the Sydney Schanberg Prize for long-form journalism for her compelling piece titled “The Deserter.” This in-depth narrative explored the story of a Russian combat officer who defected following the country’s invasion of Ukraine, encompassing a substantial 35,000 words.
PBS NewsHour’s Marcia Biggs and her team were recognized with the Foreign Television Reporting prize for their series titled “Haiti in Crisis,” which vividly illustrated the severe impacts of gang violence on everyday life in the capital city, Port-au-Prince.
Significantly, Biggs is also a grand-niece of George Polk, the CBS journalist who tragically lost his life while reporting on the Greek civil war. Established in 1949 by Long Island University, these awards honor Polk’s considerable contributions to journalism.
This year saw nearly 500 submissions, with a total of 15 winners selected for their exceptional work. A ceremony will take place on April 4 in Manhattan to honor these individuals.
John Darnton, the curator of the Polk Awards, remarked on the tough process of selection, stating, “With the extensive range and quality of reporting submitted this year, narrowing it down to these 15 winners was challenging. They truly represent the highest standards of journalism. The runners-up were equally impressive.”
Additional winners include Alissa Zhu, Nick Thieme, and Jessica Gallagher from The Baltimore Banner, recognized for their Local Reporting on the overdose crisis; Sara DiNatale from the San Antonio Express-News, who received the State Reporting prize for exposing fraud in solar energy schemes targeting senior citizens; and Katherine Eban of Vanity Fair, awarded for National Reporting for uncovering the political and economic barriers that hindered responses to bird flu.
The Justice Reporting prize was awarded to Katey Rusch and Casey Smith for their “Right to Remain Secret” series in the San Francisco Chronicle, which highlighted how law enforcement officers dismissed their misconduct records to secure lucrative pensions.
A STAT team earned the Health Care Reporting award for a six-part examination into UnitedHealth Group’s influence across the health care sector, while ProPublica received the Medical Reporting prize for revealing how stringent abortion laws led to tragic, preventable deaths among pregnant women. Bloomberg Businessweek was acknowledged with the Technology Reporting prize for investigations into how sexual predators exploit children through online gaming and social media.
In magazine reporting, Jane Mayer from The New Yorker was recognized with the Political Reporting prize for her exploration of “Pete Hegseth’s Secret History,” which detailed the Defense Secretary’s controversial past. Rachel Aviv from The New Yorker also earned the Magazine Reporting prize for her piece “Alice Munro’s Passive Voice,” which discussed the novelist’s indifferent response to allegations against a former lover related to the abuse of her daughter.
Finally, a collaborative team from NBC News and Noticias Telemundo received the National Television Reporting prize for their shocking discovery that a Texas medical school was dismembering the bodies of individuals who had died alone, leasing their remains for research purposes.
The Podcast prize was awarded to Ben Austen and Bill Healy for their work on Audible’s “The Parole Room,” which chronicles a man’s relentless pursuit for freedom from incarceration over two decades after being wrongfully convicted of murdering two Chicago police officers.
