2024 Salute to Excellence Winners
The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) announced its 2024 Salute to Excellence Awards winners during its annual gala at the #NABJ24 Convention & Career Fair Saturday in Chicago. The winners for each category are below.
NOTICE: Winners will be contacted via email in the coming weeks with information on how to verify and receive their awards by mail. Please standby for communication from the NABJ Awards and Programming Team. (Promo videos are linked to titles, if received during the nomination process. They are available through the end of the month.)
COLLEGIATE (8 Winners)
DIGITAL
Digital Media – Graduate: Best Use of Multimedia – Special Project
The Newest New Yorkers
NYCity News Service Staff
NYCity News Service, New York, NY
Digital Media – Undergraduate: Online Feature Reporting
The Belonging Gap: How BIPOC Professors Navigate an Anti-DEI Landscape
Jordyn Harrell
Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX
Digital Media – Undergraduate: Online News Reporting
Poisoned in Syracuse
April Santana
The NewsHouse, Syracuse, NY
NEWSPAPER
Newspaper – Undergraduate: Feature Reporting
SMU Archives Reveal Painful Past
Emma McRae, Jacqueline Leigh Fellows
SMU Daily Campus, Dallas, TX
PHOTOGRAPHY (GRADUATE)
Photography (Graduate Only): Multiple Images
Community of Dance
Zakiyyah Woods
NYCity News Service, New York, NY
Photography (Graduate Only): Single Image
Stranded in Senegal
Mark Banchereau
NYCity News Service, New York, NY
TELEVISION (UNDERGRADUATE)
Television (Undergraduate): Best Newscast
New York Stories
219West Staff
219West TV News Magazine, New York, NY
Television (Undergraduate): Feature: Short Form
Wendy Wang
PROFESSIONAL (106 Winners)
DIGITAL MEDIA
Digital Media – Business
Borrowers Turned to Nonbank Lenders for Mortgages — And It’s Costing Them
Ann Choi, Caleb Melby, Raeedah Wahid, Polly Wahid, Nadia Lopez
Bloomberg News, New York, NY
Digital Media – Commentary/Weblog
Race in America
Garrison Hayes
Mother Jones, Nashville, TN
Digital Media – Interactive: Feature
Land of Broken Promises
April Simpson, Camille Petersen, Joe Yerardi, Mc Nelly Torres
Center for Public Integrity, Washington, D.C.
Pushkin Industries, New York, NY
Digital Media – International Reporting: Single Story Feature
Adrift
Renata Brito, Felipe Dana
Associated Press, New York, NY
Digital Media – International Reporting: Single Story News
Indian Companies Are Bringing One of the World’s Most Toxic Industries to Africa
Will Fitzgibbon, The Examination, Chicago, IL ; Christian Locka, Museba Project, Cameroon; Emmanuel K. Dogbevi, Ghana Business News, Ghana
The Examination, Chicago, IL
Digital Media – Online Project: Feature
Buffalo: Healing From Hate, Healing Ourselves
Bill Hutchinson, Alysha Webb, Jade Lawson, Shannon Sanders and Staff of ABC News Digital
ABC News Digital, New York, NY
Digital Media – Online Project: News
Slavery’s Descendants
Tom Lasseter, Donna Bryson, Tom Bergin, Nicholas Brown, Lawrence Delevingne, Staff at Reuters
Reuters, New York, NY
Digital Media – Single Story: Feature
This Writer Just Traced His Enslaved Ancestors All the Way to Africa. Here’s How.
Rodney A. Brooks
National Geographic, Washington, D.C.
Digital Media – Single Story: News
The Department of Health and Human Services Launches Civil Rights Investigation Into the Treatment of Black Women Giving Birth at a Los Angeles Hospital
Stephanie Elam, Anna-Maja Rappard, Kathryn Jaeger, Gary Crook, Chris Audick
CNN Worldwide, Los Angeles, CA
Digital Media – Sports
‘For Black Athletes, March Madness Has Much Higher Stakes.’ — Derrick Z. Jackson Commentary for the Root
The Root, Cambridge, MA
MAGAZINE
Magazine – Over 1 Million – General Reporting
The March That Made History
Michael Grant, Barbara Leap, Pamela Mathieson, Marilyn Milloy, Niamh Rowe, and Leslie Quander Wooldridge
AARP The Magazine, Washington, D.C.
Magazine – Under 1 Million – Business
Hollywood Ignored Tyler Perry, So He Built His Own Empire
Brett Pulley
Bloomberg Businessweek, New York, NY
Magazine – Under 1 Million – General Reporting
Getting Across Baltimore
Gabrielle Gurley
The American Prospect, Washington, D.C.
Magazine – Under 1 Million – International
What Girls in Malawi Gain – And Give Up – By Choosing Education
Xanthe Scharff, Trudy Palmer
The Fuller Project, Washington, D.C. and Christian Science Monitor, Boston, MA
Magazine – Under 1 Million – Single Topic Series
The Great Fertility Divide
Lauren Williams, Lisa Armstrong, Katti Gray, Christina Coleman Mullen
The Guardian US, New York, NY
NEWSPAPER
Newspaper – National – Business
Hail to the Chief Diversity Officers
Sheree Curry
USA TODAY, USA TODAY NETWORK, STUDIO Gannett, Minneapolis, MN
Newspaper – National – Feature: Single Story
Their Sons’ Lives Ended in Gunfire. In Grief, They Found a Second Act.
Jasmine Hilton
The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.
Newspaper – National – News: Series
The Backlash Against Corporate Diversity
Ray A. Smith, Vanessa Fuhrmans, Te-Ping Chen, Lauren Weber, Theo Francis
The Wall Street Journal, New York, NY
Newspaper – National – News: Single Story
The New Selma? Activists Say Under DeSantis Florida is ‘Ground Zero’ in Civil Rights Fight
Deborah Berry
USA TODAY, Washington, D.C.
Newspaper – National – Special Project
The South Got Something To Say
DeAsia Page, Ryon Horne, Tyson Horne, Sandra Brown, Ernie Suggs
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Atlanta, GA
From Birth to Death
Kat Stafford
Associated Press, New York, NY
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 50 & Below – Business
Jeffrey L. Boney
Forward Times Publishing Co., Houston, TX
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 50 & Below – Commentary/Essay
OpEd: One White Woman’s Tears Are Washing Away Black History
ReShonda Tate
Houston Defender Network, Houston, TX
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 50 & Below – Feature: Series
The Tulsa Project
Katherine Gilyard
The 19th* News, Washington, D.C.
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 50 & Below – Feature: Single Story
Life as a Shadow
John W. Fountain
Chicago Crusader
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 50 & Below – Investigative
The Price of Freedom: How Bail Reform is Changing Justice
Damaso Reyes
New York Amsterdam News, New York, NY
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 50 & Below – News: Series
Anti-Blackness
Alan “Aswad” Walker
Houston Defender Network, Houston, TX
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 50 & Below – Specialty
Black Autistic Women and Girls
Katherine Gilyard
The 19th* News, Washington, D.C.
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 50 & Below – Sports
‘I’m Gonna Be in the Big Leagues’
Jeffrey L. Boney
Forward Times Publishing Co., Houston, TX
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 51-100 – Commentary/Essay
Melinda Henneberger, Kansas City Star
Melinda Henneberger
Kansas City Star, Kansas City, MO
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 51-100 – Feature: Single Story
Haiti Gangs Take Aim at Disabled Children: ‘Put Those Kids Out of Their Misery or We Will’
Jacqueline Charles
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 51-100 – Investigative
The Foreclosure Franchise
Ben Wieder, Shirsho Dasgupta, Sheridan Wall, Amelia Winger
Miami Herald, Miami, FL
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 51-100 – News: Series
Voices of Kansas City
Mará Rose Williams, Hannah Wise, Monty Davis
The Kansas City Star, Kansas City, MO
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 51-100 – News: Single Story
The Shooting of Ralph Yarl
Glenn E. Rice, Bill Lukitsch, Anna Spoerre, Andrea Klick
The Kansas City Star, Kansas City, MO
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 101-200 – Business
Exodus of Major Full-Service Grocers Offering Healthy Variety Paints a Bleak Picture of Food Access for Some in Chicago
Mariah Rush, Alden Loury
Chicago Sun-Times, WBEZ Chicago, Chicago, IL
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 101-200 – Commentary/Essay
A Collection of Commentary on Race in America
James Causey
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee, WI
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 101-200 – Feature: Series
The Dancer Documentary and Narrative Feature
Ryon Horne, Sandra Brown, Tyson Horne, Matthew Kempner, Colleen McMillar
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Atlanta, GA
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 101-200 – Feature: Single Story
Are Guaranteed-Income Programs Working?
Elvia Malagón, Esther Yoon-Ji Kang
Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago, IL
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 101-200 – Investigative
Corruption, Backroom Deals, Local Politics Mire N.J.’s Legal Weed Rollout, Businesses Say
Jelani Gibson
The Star-Ledger/NJ.com, Iselin, NJ
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 101-200 – News: Series
Chicago’s Mass School Closings’ Aftermath
Sarah Karp, Nader Issa, Lauren FitzPatrick, Alden Loury
Chicago Sun-Times, WBEZ Chicago, Chicago, IL
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 101-200 – News: Single Story
N.J. Is Becoming More Diverse. So, Why Aren’t There More Teachers of Color?
Tina Kelley
The Star-Ledger/NJ.com, Iselin, NJ
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 101-200 – Specialty
What the Three-Fifths Clause Tells Us About Strokes and Other Health Disparities for Black Americans
James Causey
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee, WI
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 101-200 – Sports
Ghanaian Grace
Kevin Armstrong
The Star-Ledger/NJ.com, Iselin, NJ
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 201 & Above – Business
Cannabis Delays, Financing Constraints Could Hamper New York’s Goals for Pot Industry
Sarina Trangle
Newsday, Melville, NY
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 201 & Above – Commentary/Essay
Michelle Singletary: Crypto and the Family Home Is Not the Way to Leave a Legacy of Black Wealth
Michelle Singletary
The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 201 & Above – Feature: Series
Following the Ancestors to France
Elizabeth Wellington, Heather Khalifa, Joseph Hernandez
Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 201 & Above – Feature: Single Story
Black Churches in Florida Buck Desantis: ‘Our Churches Will Teach Our Own History.’
Deborah Berry
USA TODAY, Washington, D.C.
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 201 & Above – Investigative
Crumbling City
Samantha Melamed, Dylan Purcell
The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 201 & Above – News: Series
Four Decades Later, NAACP Delegates Return to Boston, Finding a City Longing to Recover From Its Racial Strife
Tiana Woodard, Sahar Fatima, Milton Valencia, Mike Damiano, Alyssa Guffey
The Boston Globe, Boston, MA
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 201 & Above – News: Single Story
Black History ‘Underground Railroad’ Forms Across U.S. After Increase of Book Bans
Deborah Berry
USA TODAY, Washington, D.C.
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 201 & Above – Specialty
Old World, Young Africa
Staff of The New York Times
The New York Times, New York, NY
Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 201 & Above – Sports
Wes Hopkins Punished Receivers for the Eagles’ Great Kelly Green Defenses. Life Returned the Favor.
Mike Sielski
The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA
PHOTOJOURNALISM
Photojournalism – Photography: Single Image
Josiah Brown
Thomas A. Ferrara
Newsday, Melville, NY
Photojournalism – Photography: Multiple Images
Reclaiming Black Masculinity: An L.A. Father’s Journey Toward Healing Himself, Building Community
Jason Armond
Los Angeles Times, El Segundo, CA
Photojournalism – Photography: Videography
‘Football Was Everything’ for This Chicago Peewee Coach. Even After He Became Blind.
Anthony Vazquez
Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago, IL
PODCAST
Podcast – Arts and Culture
Into America: Street Disciples, Part 1: The Concrete Jungle
Trymaine Lee, Aisha Turner, Into America Team
MSNBC, New York, NY
Podcast – Commentary & Discussion
Cotton Capital: Episode 3: The Sea Islands: Journalist DeNeen L. Brown Travels to the Sea Islands in the U.S. and Meets the Gullah Geechee People
DeNeen L. Brown, Staff of the Guardian
London, UK
Podcast – Lifestyle
The Stoop: You Trippin’?
Podcast – Limited Series
Murder in Boston: The Untold Story of the Charles and Carol Stuart Shooting
Adrian Walker, Evan Allen, Elizabeth Koh, Andrew Ryan, Brendan McCarthy, Kristin Nelson
The Boston Globe, Boston, MA
PR & MARKETING CAMPAIGNS
PR & Marketing Campaigns – Cause Related Business – Services
Giving Back: The Soul of Philanthropy Reframed and Exhibited
Wyn-Win Communications, Chicago, IL
Intuit to Launch IDEAS Program in Partnership With the Los Angeles Urban League
Ron H. Carter, Tania Mercado, Jamecca Marshall, Michael Lawson, Cynthia Mitchell-Heard
The Carter Agency, Pasadena, CA; The Los Angeles Urban League, Los Angeles, CA; Intuit Inc., Woodland Hills, CA
PR & Marketing Campaigns – Government
Air Combat Command: Building Bridges — Continuing Conversations
Karen Lynne Eure Wilson
ACC Public Affairs, U.S. Air Force Joint Base Langley – Eustis, VA
PR & Marketing Campaigns – Online Media
African Development Bank Group: International Women’s Day and Month of Gender in Focus Campaign
Staff of African Development Bank Group
Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
PR & Marketing Campaigns – Print
Visionary Leadership Meets Tradition in Annual Report
Richelle Payne, James E. Parker Jr., Franklin Fitzgerald, O’Shay Jelks, Marcia Perry-Dix
Hampton University, Hampton, VA; Franklin Fitzgerald Videography, Hampton, VA; Perry Media, Hummelstown, PA
RADIO
Radio – Market 16 & Below – Feature
How Mississippi Historians Are Preserving Emmett Till’s Story
Maya Miller
Gulf States Newsroom, Birmingham, AL
Radio – Market 16 & Below – News: Series
IAAM: The New International African American Museum
Gwendolyn Glenn
WFAE 90.7, Charlotte, NC
Radio – Market 16 & Below – Public Affairs: Segment
Another View: Natural Hair — The Crown Act
Barbara Hamm Lee, Lisa Godley, Jordan Christie
WHRO Public Media, Norfolk, VA
Radio – Network: Feature
The Sunday Magazine — A Soul Revival: The Story and Legacy of Soul Magazine
Peter Mitton
CBC Radio, Toronto, Ontario
Radio – Top 15 Markets: Commentary
Callie Crossley’s Commentaries: From Patrick Mahomes to Lebron James, Let’s Celebrate Modern Makers of Black History; Remembering a Treasured New Year’s Tradition With Dad
Callie Crossley
GBH-News, Boston, MA
Radio – Top 15 Markets: Feature
Coretta Scott: The Other ‘King’ of Boston: Two Stories
Phillip Martin
GBH-News, Boston, MA
Radio – Top 15 Markets: Investigative
A Lowell College Baseball Player Was Kicked Off the Team. He Believes Racism Is at the Root of It.
Phillip Martin
GBH-News, Boston, MA
Radio – Top 15 Markets: News: Series
Hip-Hop at 50: A History of Explosive Musical and Cultural Innovation
Juana Summers, Kat Lonsdorf, Noah Caldwell, Patrick Jarenwattananon
All Things Considered, National Public Radio (NPR), Washington, D.C.
Radio – Top 15 Markets: Public Affairs: Segment
Right-Leaning Groups Opposed to Diversity Efforts Find Unlikely Allies in Newton’s Parents
Phillip Martin
GBH-News, Boston, MA
TELEVISION
Television – Market 16 & Below: Documentary
Wisconsin in Black and White
Frederica Freyberg, Murv Seymour, Nathan Denzin, Tom Micksch, Ethan Freel, Lina Soblyte
Wisconsin Public Media, PBS Wisconsin, WHA-TV, Madison, WI
Television – Market 16 & Below: Feature: Long Form
In Search of Her African Roots — A Milwaukee Woman Finds Her Nation and Tribe, Through a DNA Test
Shannon W. Sims, Andrew Huggins, Bryce Richards
TMJ4 News, Milwaukee, WI
Television – Market 16 & Below: Feature: Short Form
Virginia Historians Shine Light on Lesser-Known Black History at Bacon’s Castle in Surry County
Jessica Larché
WTKR-TV, Norfolk, VA
Television – Market 16 & Below: General Assignment News: Long Form
Years of Misconduct Caught Up to LMPD
Gilbert Corsey
WDRB News, Louisville, KY
Television – Market 16 & Below: General Assignment News: Short Form
Young, Black and Missing
Claudine Ewing, J. Dooley O’Rourke, Justin Wahowski
WGRZ-TV, Buffalo, NY
Television – Market 16 & Below: Investigative
STOPPED
Brandi Cummings, Tamara Richter, Jack Noonan, Victor Nieto
KCRA 3, Sacramento, CA
Television – Market 16 & Below: Public Affairs: Program
A Turning Point: Seeking Solutions to the Lingering Effects of Redlining
Asedrick Thomas
WKYC Television, Cleveland, OH
Television – Market 16 & Below: Public Affairs: Segment
Learning Loss: VPM News Focal Point
Angie Miles, Zach Keifer, Billy Shields, Shawn Freude
VPM News Focal Point, Richmond, VA
Television – Market 16 & Below: Specialty
Ashlei King
KLRT, Little Rock, AR
Television – Market 16 & Below: Sports
27 Strong: Black Girl in a White World
Jasmine Minor
WISH-TV, Indianapolis, IN
Television – Network: Documentary
Tyre Nichols: Never Made It Home
Byron Pitts, Eman Varoqua and Staff of IMPACT x Nightline
ABC News Studios, IMPACT x Nightline, New York, NY
Homebirth Journey: Saving Black Moms for The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper
Abby Phillip & The Whole Story Team
CNN Worldwide, New York, New York
Television – Network: Feature: Long Form
Soul of a Nation Presents: Black in Vegas
Catherine McKenzie, Tine, Margie Merritt, Brad Billington, Brianti Downing, Matt Claiborne
ABC News Studios, New York, NY
Television – Network: Feature: Short Form
CBS Mornings: A Fighting Chance
Jericka Duncan, Lete Childs, Tony Furlow, Shawna Thomas, Brian Bingham, Michael Cesario
CBS Mornings Network: CBS, New York, NY
Television – Network: General Assignment News: Long Form
The Power of Water: Waterproof, Louisiana
Steve Osunsami, Tonya Simpson, Jared Kofsky, Howard Tate, Cindy Galli, Eric Ortega
ABC News Live Prime With Linsey Davis, New York, NY
Television – Network: General Assignment News: Short Form
The CBS Evening News With Norah O’Donnell: Eye on America — Disparities in Heart Disease Risk and Care
Adam Verdugo, Adriana Diaz, Kim Harvey, Sandra Temko, Cassandra Gauthier, Deborah Rubin
The CBS Evening News With Norah O’Donnell, New York, NY
Television – Network: Investigative
American Vets: Benefits, Race & Inequality
Staff of NBC News, New York, NY
Staff of NBCU Local Stations, New York, NY
Television – Network: International
CBS Sunday Morning: Bittersweet
Seth Doane, Sari Aviv, Ed Givnish, Thorsten Hoefle, Anton Van Der Merwe, Rand Morrison
CBS Sunday Morning, New York, NY
Television – Network: Public Affairs: Interview/Discussion
Elwyn Lopez, Stephanie Wash, Sabina Ghebremedhin, Emily Lippiello, Brianti Downing, Eric Ortega
ABC News Live Prime With Linsey Davis, New York, NY
Television – Network: Public Affairs: Program
Deborah Roberts, Marjorie McAfee, Deborah Kim, Lisa Zoebel, Eman Varoqua, and Staff of Nightline
ABC News Nightline, New York, NY
Television – Network: Public Affairs: Segment
CBS News: America in Black, Unnecessary Amputations
Wesley Lowery, Alyse Shorland, CBS News Race & Culture Staff, BET News Staff
CBS News, BET News, New York, NY
Television – Network: Specialty
America’s Maternal Healthcare Divide
Rehema Ellis, Zinhle Essamuah, Antonia Hylton, Janelle Richards, Mary Godie, Micki Fahner
NBC Nightly News With Lester Holt, New York, NY
Television – Network: Sports
Fisk Becomes First HBCU to Compete in NCAA Gymnastics
Priscilla Thompson, Debra Jones, Nia Phillips, Karen Trosset
NBC News – TODAY, New York, NY
Television – Network: Spot News
January 27: A Painful Day in Memphis
Staff of ABC News
ABC News, New York, NY
Television – Top 15 Markets: Documentary
March on Washington: 60 Years Later
Marissa Mitchell, Ama Arthur-Asmah, Tim Whaley
WTTG-TV, Bethesda, MD
Television – Top 15 Markets: Feature: Long Form
The Deuces — Exploring Florida’s Historically Black Neighborhoods: If Streets Could Talk
Javanté Ingram, Rob Born
WTSP, Tampa, FL
African American Heritage Association of St. Pete, St. Petersburg, FL
Television – Top 15 Markets: Feature: Short Form
Two Schools, One Story: Dallas’ Booker T. Washington High School Celebrates 100 Years
Demond Fernandez
WFAA-TV, Dallas, TX
Television – Top 15 Markets: General Assignment News: Short Form
Speaking for the Silenced
Molly Oak, Jojo Johnson, Jefferson Cochran
11Alive/WXIA, Atlanta, GA
Television – Top 15 Markets: Investigative
Brendan Keefe
Atlanta News First (WANF), InvestigateTV, Atlanta, GA
Television – Top 15 Markets: Public Affairs: Interview/Discussion
11Alive Uninterrupted
Neima Abdulahi, Darrell Pryor, Mike Nicolas, Meredith Sheldon, Erin Peterson
11Alive/WXIA, Atlanta, GA
Television – Top 15 Markets: Public Affairs: Program
Basic Black: BIPOC Women Surviving Breast Cancer
Delores Edwards, Crystal Haynes, Kenrick Mercado, Bill Francis, Jack Doyle
GBH-News, Boston, MA
Television – Top 15 Markets: Public Affairs: Specialty
Bald & Beautiful: Unmasking Alopecia, Overcoming Shame, and Embracing the Power of Authenticity
Aziza Shuler
CBS News Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
Television – Top 15 Markets: Public Affairs: Sports
Forgotten Brilliance: Rube’s Baseball Empire
Newy Scruggs, Noah Bullard
KXAS-TV, Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX
For questions or corrections, email awards@nabj.org.
(Note: The National Office is closed for post-convention break until Aug. 11.)