Announcing the 2024 Livingston Awards Finalists

Wallace House Center for Journalists and the University of Michigan announced today the 2024 Livingston Awards finalists in local, national, and international reporting. The awards support young journalists and honor the best reporting and storytelling by journalists under the age of 35 across all forms of journalism. The finalist selections were chosen from more than 400 entries for work released in 2023.

This year’s winners will be announced on June 11, 2024, at an in-person awards ceremony hosted by Ken Auletta, media writer for The New Yorker and author.

“In a particularly difficult period of journalism downsizing, it’s an honor to recognize the ambitious work of young reporters,” said Lynette Clemetson, director of the awards and the Wallace House Center for Journalists. “This year’s finalists share a commitment to truth, accountability, nuance and empathy at a moment in which these qualities can often feel in short supply.” 

Celebrating its 43rd year, the awards bolster the work of young reporters, create the next generation of journalism leaders and mentors, and advance civic engagement around powerful storytelling. The sponsors include the University of Michigan, the Knight Foundation, the Indian Trail Charitable Foundation, the Mollie Parnis Livingston Foundation, Christiane Amanpour, Dr. Gil Omenn and Martha Darling, the Judy and Fred Wilpon Foundation and The Joyce Foundation.

The Livingston Awards regional judges read all qualifying entries to select the finalists in local, national and international reporting. The regional judging panel includes Molly Ball, senior political correspondent, The Wall Street Journal; Meghna Chakrabarti, host and editor, “On Point” WBUR; Stella Chávez, immigration and demographics reporter, KERA Public Radio (Dallas); Adam Ganucheau, editor in chief, Mississippi Today; David Greene, co-founder, Fearless Media and Host, “Left, Right & Center,” KCRW (Los Angeles); Stephen Henderson, executive editor, BridgeDetroit and host, WDET, public radio Detroit and Detroit Public Television; and Amna Nawaz, co-anchor, PBS “NewsHour.”

The Livingston Awards national judges review all finalist entries and select the winners. The national judges are Raney Aronson-Rath, executive producer, “FRONTLINE”; Sally Buzbee, executive editor, The Washington Post; Sewell Chan, editor in chief, The Texas Tribune; Audie Cornish, anchor and correspondent, CNN; Matt Murray, former editor in chief, The Wall Street Journal; Lydia Polgreen, opinion columnist, The New York Times; María Elena Salinas, contributor, ABC News; Bret Stephens, opinion columnist, The New York Times; and Kara Swisher, podcast host, New York Magazine.

We present the 2024 Livingston Awards finalists and invite you to review their work here.

Local Reporting

  • Clare Amari, Houston Landing
  • Antonia Cereijido, LAist Studios
  • Rebecca Ellis, Los Angeles Times
  • Shayla Escudero, Albany Democrat-Herald
  • Andrea Gallo, The Times-Picayune and The Advocate
  • Michael Korsh and Neena Hagen, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
  • Jake Bittle and Anita Hofschneider, Grist
  • Samantha Hogan, The Maine Monitor
  • Daniel Huang, New York Magazine
  • Stephanie Kuzydym, The Courier-Journal
  • Chris Marquette, CQ Roll Call 
  • Mariam Elba and Paige Pfleger, WPLN Nashville Public Radio and ProPublica
  • Nell Salzman, Chicago Tribune
  • Ivy Scott, The Boston Globe
  • Brenna Smith, The Baltimore Banner 
  • Salina Arredondo, Jana Cholakovska, David Leffler and Savanna Strott, Public Health Watch
  • Agnel Philip, Mollie Simon and Isabelle Taft, Mississippi Today and ProPublica
  • Makenzie Huber and Annie Todd, South Dakota Searchlight and Sioux Falls Argus Leader

 National Reporting

  • Akbar Shahid Ahmed, HuffPost
  • Ethan Bauer, Deseret Magazine
  • Hannah Beckler, Business Insider
  • Matt Drange, Business Insider
  • Brittany Gibson, Politico
  • Allison Behringer and Lila Hassan, KCRW Public Media (Southern California)
  • Astead W. Herndon, The New York Times
  • Vivian Ho, The Guardian US
  • Kenny Jacoby, USA Today
  • Ava Kofman, The New Yorker co-published with ProPublica
  • Julia Lurie, Mother Jones
  • Kirsten Berg, Alex Mierjeski and Brett Murphy, ProPublica
  • Aneri Pattani, KFF Health News
  • Brianna Sacks, The Washington Post
  • Lauren Caruba and Ari Sen, The Dallas Morning News in partnership with the San Antonio Express-News
  • Richard Sima, The Washington Post
  • Talmon Joseph Smith, The New York Times
  • Margo Snipe, Capital B

 International Reporting

  • Lynzy Billing, Inside Climate News and New Lines Magazine
  • Nick Bowlin, The Drift
  • Ali Breland, The New Republic
  • Renata Brito, The Associated Press
  • Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald
  • Rachel Fobar, The Guardian US in partnership with The Fuller Project
  • Julia Love, Bloomberg Businessweek
  • Peter McKenzie, The New York Times
  • Kunle Adebajo and Mansir Muhammed, New Lines Magazine
  • Zahra Nader, The Fuller Project co-published with The Guardian US
  • Nicolas Niarchos, The Nation
  • Anastacia Galouchka and Siobhan O’Grady, The Washington Post
  • Andrei Popoviciu, In These Times
  • Cape Diamond and Rebecca Tan, The Washington Post
  • Chris Walker, 5280 Magazine
  • Jessie Williams, TIME Magazine in partnership with The Fuller Project 

More on the finalists’ work and links to watch, listen and read here.

The Eisendrath Symposium brings the Oscar-nominated documentary “20 Days in Mariupol”

Wallace House Presents a free screening of the Oscar-nominated documentary “20 Days In Mariupol,” and a conversation with the filmmakers

WCEE Film and Eisendrath Symposium Event
5:30 PM | Monday, FEB. 5, 2024
Michigan Theater

Free and open to the public.
This is a non-ticketed event.
Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis

This event will not be live-streamed.

A special screening and conversation

An AP team of Ukrainian journalists trapped in the besieged city of Mariupol struggle to continue their work documenting atrocities of the Russian invasion. As the only international reporters who remain in the city, they capture what later become defining images of the war. The documentary shows vivid, harrowing accounts of civilians caught in the siege and a window into what it’s like to report from a conflict zone and the impact of such journalism around the globe.

The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers.

The Eisendrath Symposium honors Charles R. Eisendrath, former director of Wallace House, and his lifelong commitment to international journalism.

About the filmmakers

Mstyslav Chernov is a documentary director and video journalist at The Associated Press and president of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers. Since joining the AP in 2014, he has covered major conflicts, social issues and environmental crises across Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Most recently, Chernov documented Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Together with longtime colleague Evgeniy Maloletka, Chernov recorded the siege of Mariupol, showing the world eyewitness accounts of the Russian attacks on the city in the documentary “20 Days in Mariupol.” Chernov’s reporting in Mariupol earned the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service and an Oscar nomination for Best Documentary.

Raney Aronson-Rath is the editor-in-chief and executive producer of FRONTLINE, PBS’ flagship investigative journalism series, and is a leading voice on the future of journalism. Aronson-Rath oversees FRONTLINE’s acclaimed investigative reporting on air and online and directs the series’ editorial vision — executive producing more than 20 in-depth documentaries each year on critical issues facing the country and the world. FRONTLINE has won every major award in broadcast journalism under Aronson-Rath’s leadership. She is a producer of the documentary “20 Days in Mariupol.” For nearly two decades, Aronson-Rath has served as a Livingston Awards judge. A program of Wallace House Center for Journalists, the prize honors reporters under the age of 35 and identifies the next generation of journalism leaders. 

Michelle Mizner is an Emmy-winning documentary producer and film editor on staff at FRONTLINE PBS. Her work for the series has been recognized by the Peabodys, World Press Photo, duPont-Columbia Awards, and SXSW. Select titles as a producer and editor include “Life in Baghdad,”  “Inside Yemen,” with correspondent Martin Smith, and “The Last Call” with director Marcela Gaviria. In addition to films, Mizner has produced several acclaimed interactive documentaries, including “Inheritance,” “The Last Generation,” and “Un(re)solved.” She is the producer and editor of the documentary “20 Days in Mariupol,” her first feature-length film.

Co-sponsors:
Weiser Center for Europe and Eurasia
International Institute
Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies

This event is produced with support from Knight Foundation.

An Interactive Webinar for Fellowship Applicants

Learn More About the Knight-Wallace Fellowships and Hear from our Alumni.

Are you ready to take the next step in your journalism career with a Knight-Wallace Fellowship? Join our webinar with alumni Makeda Easter ‘23, Chris Marquette ‘23 and Elodie Vialle ‘20 and learn how the fellowship boosted their careers. Hear about their fellowship experiences, ask them your questions, and discover what a year in Ann Arbor at the University of Michigan can do for your life and journalism career.

Noon – 1 p.m. ET | Thursday, November 16. 
RSVP here to receive the Zoom link.

About the Speakers

Makeda Easter (2022-2023) is a journalist and creative artist based in Chicago. As a Knight-Wallace Fellow, she deepened and expanded “the art rebellion,” an art-reporting project that amplifies the essential role of artists in the U.S. and the stories of artists who fight to improve their communities.

Chris Marquette (2022-2023) is a congressional accountability reporter for CQ Roll Call in Washington, D.C., covering the U.S. Capitol Police and lawmaker transgressions. The Knight-Wallace Fellowship enabled him to complete an in-depth investigative series on trends and practices among the U.S. Capitol Police and potential areas for reform.

Elodie Vialle (2019-2020) is a journalist at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard. She is also a Senior Advisor on Digital Safety and Free Expression at PEN America. During her Knight-Wallace Fellowship, she developed safety protocols, programs, and training for journalists facing online attacks.

Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellowship applications for the 2024-2025 academic year are now open.

The deadline for international applicants is December 1, 2023.

The deadline for U.S. applicants is February 1, 2024.

More About Knight-Wallace Fellowship

Announcing the 2023 Livingston Award Winners

LIV 2023 Winners
2023 Livingston Award winners (clockwise from top-left) Anna Wolfe of Mississippi Today, Caitlin Dickerson of The Atlantic and Vasilisa Stepanenko of The Associated Press.

Today the Livingston Awards honor stories that represent the best in local, national and international reporting by journalists under the age of 35. The winning stories uncovered text messages indicating Mississippi’s misuse of federal welfare funding, the inner working of the U.S. government’s child separation policy, and the atrocities committed by Putin’s army against civilians in Ukraine. The $10,000 prizes are for work released in 2022.

The Livingston Awards also honored Ken Auletta, author and writer for The New Yorker, with a special tribute for his enduring commitment to the Livingston Awards and the careers of young journalists. Auletta joined the Livingston board of national judges in 1983, the third year of the program, and served in that role through 2022.

Livingston Awards national judges Sewell Chan of The Texas Tribune, María Elena Salinas of ABC News and Matt Murray of News Corp introduced the winners at a ceremony hosted by former Livingston Awards national judge Anna Quindlen, author.

“The best reporters keep looking, questioning and documenting when they are told there is nothing more to see,” said Lynette Clemetson, Livingston Awards director.  “This year’s winners laid bare abuses of power and the networks of complicity and complacency that allowed those abuses to unfold. Their work influenced the public record and how history will regard the players and their deeds. It is an honor to recognize them for their tenacity, rigor and storytelling excellence.”

Today’s ceremony included special remarks from Matthew Luxmoore, a Livingston Award finalist and reporter from The Wall Street Journal who covers Russia, Ukraine and the former Soviet Union. He spoke at the podium in support of his friend and colleague, Evan Gershkovich, who has been wrongfully imprisoned in Russia since March 29 of this year.

Celebrating its 42nd year, the awards bolster the work of young reporters, create the next generation of journalism leaders and mentors, and advance civic engagement around powerful storytelling. Major sponsors include the University of Michigan, Knight Foundation, the Indian Trail Charitable Foundation, the Mollie Parnis Livingston Foundation, Christiane Amanpour, the Judy and Fred Wilpon Family Foundation, Dr. Gil Omenn and Martha Darling and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

The 2023 winners for work released in 2022 are listed below.

Local Reporting

Anna Wolfe, 28, of Mississippi Today for “The Backchannel: Mississippi’s Welfare Scandal,” a multiyear investigation into Mississippi’s  2% approval rate of applicants for federal welfare funding uncovering text messages between then-Governor Bill Bryant, state officials and Bryant’s friends, including NFL football legend Brett Favre and unraveling the largest public fraud in Mississippi’s history.

“Anna Wolfe’s dogged investigation into Mississippi’s misuse of funds intended to help needy families demonstrates the power of journalism to expose corruption. She was the first to reveal text messaging indicating that welfare funds had been diverted to a pharmaceutical company in which a retired NFL star was an early investor. Her tenacious digging, over multiple years, has had a staggering impact on a state with high levels of poverty and inequality.”
— Sewell Chan, Livingston Awards national judge

National Reporting

Caitlin Dickerson, 33, of The Atlantic for “We Need to Take Away Children,” a masterful examination of the U.S. government’s child separation policy revealing how officials at every level heedlessly and often deceptively advanced policy that defied the country’s most basic stated values.

“In her exhaustive reconstruction of the Trump administration’s implementation of its family separation policy, Caitlin Dickerson brought to life jaw-dropping and eye-opening details of how the policy was accepted and implemented at different levels of government. Through exclusive interviews at multiple levels, she meticulously laid out how a handful of people set off a chain reaction of chaos and pain that continues to this day. Her reporting has established a new public record of a devastating episode in our nation’s history.”
— María Elena Salinas, Livingston Awards national judge

International Reporting

Vasilisa Stepanenko, 22, of The Associated Press for “A Year of War,” a series of harrowing videos exposing the atrocities against civilians committed by Putin’s army in Ukraine and laying bare the devasting human toll of war.

“In a year that saw a great deal of amazing and powerful work from journalists covering the Ukraine war, Vasilisa’s stories had a unique immediacy and visceral power that vividly bore witness to the impact of the war in her country. Her work had an undeniable impact on the world’s understanding of the struggle. And the great personal courage she displayed amid tremendous peril underscores the stakes of the battle to tell the truth on the ground.”
— Matt Murray, Livingston Awards national judge

Special Tribute

Ken Auletta, author, media and communications writer for The New Yorker and Livingston Awards judge from 1983 to 2022.

This year the Livingston Awards honored Ken Auletta with a special tribute for his enduring commitment to the program and the careers of young journalists. Anna Quindlen, author and Livingston Awards judge from 2009 to 2022, presented Auletta with the award and introduced a video with tributes from his fellow Livingston Award judges and past Livingston award winners. Kara Swisher said in the video tribute, “There’s an expression. Anything that can shine does. Ken shines a light on the things that shine, which is really important when it comes to young reporters.” Auletta’s most meaningful legacy is in the lives and careers of journalists he helped transform.

Watch the video tribute to Ken Auletta.

In addition to Buzbee, Chan and Murray, the Livingston national judges panel includes Raney Aronson-Rath of PBS; Audie Cornish of CNN; Lydia Polgreen of The New York Times; Bret Stephens of The New York Times; and Kara Swisher of New York Magazine.

More on the winners here.

Announcing the 2023 Livingston Award Finalists

Wallace House Center for Journalists and the University of Michigan announced today the 2023 Livingston Awards finalists in local, national, and international reporting. The awards support young journalists and honor the best reporting and storytelling by journalists under the age of 35 across all forms of journalism. The finalist selections were chosen from more than 450 entries for work released in 2022.

This year’s winners will be announced on June 13, 2023, at an in-person awards ceremony hosted by Anna Quindlen with a special tribute to Ken Auletta for his enduring commitment to the Livingston Awards and the careers of young journalists. 

“This year’s finalists and the issues they pursued affirm the commitment of young reporters to tackle the toughest of stories,” said Lynette Clemetson, director of the awards and the Wallace House Center for Journalists.  “The breathtaking range of this exceptional work demonstrates the unique ability of journalism to make us stop, take notice, bear witness, and expect accountability.” 

Celebrating its 42nd year, the awards bolster the work of young reporters, create the next generation of journalism leaders and mentors, and advance civic engagement around powerful storytelling. The sponsors include the University of Michigan, the Knight Foundation, the Indian Trail Charitable Foundation, the Mollie Parnis Livingston Foundation, Christiane Amanpour, Dr. Gil Omenn and Martha Darling, the Judy and Fred Wilpon Foundation, Emerson Collective, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, The Associated Press and The New Yorker.

The Livingston Awards regional judges read all qualifying entries to select the finalists in local, national and international reporting. The regional judging panel includes Molly Ball, national political correspondent, TIME; Stella Chávez, immigration and demographics reporter, KERA Public Radio (Dallas); Chris Davis, deputy for the Local Investigative Reporting Fellowship, The New York Times; David Greene, Co-founder, Fearless Media and Host, “Left, Right & Center” KCRW (Los Angeles); Stephen Henderson, Executive Editor, BridgeDetroit and Host, WDET, public radio Detroit and Detroit Public Television; Shirley Leung, columnist and associate editor, The Boston Globe; and Amna Nawaz, co-anchor, PBS “NewsHour.”

The Livingston Awards national judges review all finalist entries and select the winners. The national judges are Raney Aronson-Rath, executive producer, “FRONTLINE”; Sally Buzbee, executive editor, The Washington Post; Sewell Chan, editor in chief, The Texas Tribune; Audie Cornish, anchor and correspondent, CNN; Matt Murray, consultant, News Corp; Lydia Polgreen, opinion columnist, The New York Times; María Elena Salinas, contributor, ABC News; Bret Stephens, opinion columnist, The New York Times; and Kara Swisher, executive producer, Code Conference.

We present the 2023 Livingston Awards finalists and invite you to review their work here.

Local Reporting

  • Mayowa Aina and Kari Plog, KNKX Public Radio and The Seattle Times
  • James Barragán and Davis Winkie, The Texas Tribune and Military Times
  • Sarah Blaskey and Nicholas Nehamas, Miami Herald
  • Marisa Gerber, Los Angeles Times
  • Niki Griswold, Austin American-Statesman
  • Samantha Hogan, The Maine Monitor
  • Maya Kaufman, Crain’s New York Business
  • David Leffler and Savanna Strott, Public Health Watch in partnership with The Pulitzer Center, the Investigative Reporting Workshop and Grist
  • Alex Mann, The Baltimore Sun
  • Max Nesterak, Minnesota Reformer
  • Krystal Nurse, Lansing State Journal
  • Phoebe Petrovic and Nina Earnest, Wisconsin Watch and Wisconsin Public Radio 
  • Albert Samaha, BuzzFeed News
  • Will Sennott, The New Bedford Light in partnership with ProPublica
  • Langston Taylor and Zachary T. Sampson, Tampa Bay Times
  • Trisha Thadani, San Francisco Chronicle 
  • Carter Walker, LNP | LancasterOnline
  • Julie Zauzmer Weil, Adrian Blanco Ramos and Leo Dominguez, The Washington Post
  • Anna Wolfe, Mississippi Today 

 National Reporting

  • Rachel Adams-Heard and Davis Land, Bloomberg News
  • Marshall Cohen, Zachary Cohen and Dan Merica, CNN
  • Jasper Craven, Mother Jones
  • Gaby Del Valle, The Verge
  • Caitlin Dickerson, The Atlantic
  • Robert Downen, The Houston Chronicle
  • Nicholas Florko, STAT
  • Alex Heath, The Verge
  • Astead W. Herndon, The New York Times
  • Cassandra Jaramillo, Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting
  • Caroline Kitchener, The Washington Post
  • Ava Kofman, The New Yorker and ProPublica
  • Samantha Michaels and Mark Helenowski, Mother Jones
  • Brett Murphy, ProPublica
  • Elissa Nadworny and Lauran Migaki, NPR
  • Andrea Patiño Contreras, Univision News Digital
  • Alexandra Rain, Deseret News
  • Lauren Rosenthal, Jamie Hobbs and Anna Canny, American Public Media
  • Meg Shutzer and Rachel Lauren Mueller, The New York Times and the Investigative Reporting Program at the University of California, Berkeley, Graduate School of Journalism
  • Anjali Singhvi, The New York Times

 International Reporting

  • Lynzy Billing, ProPublica
  • Regine Cabato and Shibani Mahtani, The Washington Post
  • Isabelle Khurshudyan and Kamila Hrabchuk, The Washington Post
  • Oscar Lopez, The New York Times
  • Matthew Luxmoore, The Wall Street Journal
  • Lyse Mauvais and Solin Muhammed Amin, Al-Monitor
  • Leila Miller, Los Angeles Times
  • Alexander Sammon, The New Republic
  • Mia Sato, The Verge
  • Emily Schultheis, Coda Story
  • Sarah Souli, The Atavist
  • Vasilisa Stepanenko, The Associated Press
  • Sam Tabachnik, The Denver Post
  • Elizabeth Trovall, Houston Chronicle
  • Vivian Yee, Allison McCann and Josh Holder, The New York Times

More on the finalists’ work and links to watch, listen and read here.

The Eisendrath Symposium with Fred de Sam Lazaro of “PBS NewsHour”

Wallace House Presents Fred de Sam Lazaro of “PBS NewsHour” and the Under-Told Stories journalism project

“Under-Told Stories: Keeping International Stories in the News”

4:30 – 6 PM | Thursday, March 16, 2023
Rackham Amphitheatre, fourth floor

An in-person event
Free and open to the public

Register to attend here. Registrations are not required but allow us to send you event updates and reminders.

This event will also be live-streamed here.

Wallace House Presents Fred de Sam Lazaro, executive director of Under-Told Stories and correspondent for the “PBS NewsHour,” as he takes a critical look at the world’s underreported events and awakens us to understand the daily concerns of faraway people whose lives and challenges intersect with our own. A 1989 Michigan Journalism Fellow (later named the Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellowship), de Sam Lazaro founded Under-Told Stories in 2006, a journalism project focused on the consequences of poverty and stories about the world’s biggest challenges, including climate, food and water, and human rights. In addition to producing content for news organizations, Under-Told Stories collaborates with educators to engage students on the pressing issues of our time.

 

The Eisendrath Symposium honors Charles R. Eisendrath, former director of Wallace House, and his lifelong commitment to international journalism.

About the speaker
Fred de Sam Lazaro is the executive director of Under-Told Stories and has served as a “PBS NewsHour” correspondent since 1985. He was also a regular contributor and substitute anchor for PBS’ “Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly.” Fred also has directed films from India and the Democratic Republic of Congo for the acclaimed documentary series “Wide Angle.”

Fred has reported from 70 countries, focusing on the myriad issues underlying poverty and human suffering, which are underreported in the mainstream U.S. media. He founded the Under-Told Stories Project, now located at the University of St. Thomas, which is building a library of social innovation and entrepreneurship reports designed to use storytelling to enhance students’ understanding of the pressing global issues of our time.

Co-Sponsors:
International Institute (II)
Detroit Public TV (DPTV)

This event is produced with support from Knight Foundation.

More Wallace House Presents events

The 35th Graham Hovey Lecture with Scott Tong, host of NPR’s “Here & Now”

“China’s Paradox: Authoritarianism and Weakness”

September 15, 2022 | 5 p.m.
Reception following lecture

Wallace House Gardens
620 Oxford Road, Ann Arbor

Welcome remarks by Tabbye Chavous,
Vice Provost for Equity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer

This event is in-person.

Watch the video recording.

Wallace House announces the return of our outdoor, in-person Graham Hovey Lecture

In 2013, longtime China correspondent Scott Tong came to the Knight-Wallace Fellowships to research China’s on-again, off-again ties with the global community and how it connected with his own family. The resulting book, “A Village with My Name: A Family History of China’s Opening to the World,” examines nationalism and globalization through the stories of five generations of Tongs. China’s openness to the western world delivered great benefits to the country yet came at a devasting human price during Mao’s communist rule. In the end, this openness made it possible for Tong to become an American journalist covering China.

Today, Beijing’s increasingly antagonistic relations with Washington and many advanced economies present a great risk to its own economy and high-tech development.

Now a co-host of NPR’s Here & Now Tong returns to Wallace House to deliver the 35th Graham Hovey Lecture and discuss Beijing’s increasing authoritarianism and international aggression and what it signals for its own future and that of globalization.

About the Speaker

Scott Tong is an author and the co-host of Here & Now, NPR’s midday news magazine, produced at WBUR. Previously he spent 16 years at Marketplace as Shanghai bureau chief and senior correspondent. As a 2014 Knight-Wallace Fellow at the University of Michigan, Tong explored comparative ecosystems, innovation and the history of China.

About the Graham Hovey Lecture

The annual Graham Hovey Lecture recognizes a Knight-Wallace journalist whose career exemplifies the benefits of a fellowship at the University of Michigan and whose ensuing work is at the forefront of our national conversations. The event is named for the late Graham Hovey, director of the fellowship program from 1980 to 1986 and a distinguished journalist for The New York Times.

 

This event is outdoors. Wallace House will follow the University of Michigan’s Covid protocol and guidelines for this in-person event.

Michigan Radio
Michigan Radio

Michigan Radio is a co-sponsor of this event.

Announcing the 2022 Livingston Award Winners

2022 Livingston Award winners (clockwise from top-left) Alex Stuckey of the Houston Chronicle, Jose A. Del Real of The Washington Post, Erika Lantz and Elin Lantz Lesser of Rococo Punch and iHeartRadio, and the Richard M. Clurman Award recipient, the late Fred Hiatt.

Today the Livingston Awards honor stories that represent the best in local, national and international reporting by journalists under the age of 35. The winning stories highlight Texas’s troubled mental healthcare system, the spread of viral disinformation and its effects on personal relationships, and the darker side of a religious order founded by Mother Theresa. The $10,000 prizes are for work released in 2021.

The Livingston Awards also honored the late Fred Hiatt, editorial page editor of The Washington Post, with the Richard M. Clurman Award for mentoring. The $5,000 prize is given each year to an experienced journalist who has played a pivotal role in guiding and nurturing the careers of young reporters. The prize is named for the late Richard M. Clurman, former chief of correspondents for Time-Life News Service and architect of the Livingston Awards.

Livingston Awards national judges Raney Aronson-Rath of Frontline, María Elena Salinas of ABC News, Anna Quindlen, author, and Bret Stephens of The New York Times introduced the winners at a ceremony, hosted by former long-serving Livingston Awards national judge Dean Baquet of The New York Times.

“Reading the Livingston Award entries we are reminded of the power of journalism to chronicle not just the biggest stories of the moment, but also looming crises and long ago misdeeds only now being called to account. This year’s winners each crafted beautifully nuanced portraits of the consequences of systemic failures and loss of trust in institutions,” said Lynette Clemetson, director of Wallace House. “Through meticulous reporting, they leave us no choice but to ponder the responsibility of those in power and our individual roles in either perpetuating or changing the systems that guide our lives.” 

Celebrating its 41st year, the awards bolster the work of young reporters, create the next generation of journalism leaders and mentors, and advance civic engagement around powerful storytelling. The sponsors include the University of Michigan, Knight Foundation, the Indian Trail Charitable Foundation, the Mollie Parnis Livingston Foundation, Christiane Amanpour, the Fred and Judy Wilpon Foundation, Dr. Gil Omenn and Martha Darling, and Google News Inititative.

The 2022 winners for work released in 2021 are listed below.

Local Reporting

Alex Stuckey, 31, of the Houston Chronicle for “In Crisis,” an investigation of Texas’s mental health facilities, revealing an underfunded system shrouded in secrecy, where patient care takes a backseat to blame-avoidance. Her work prompted new state procedures and legislation to begin to address these problems.

“Alex Stuckey’s vivid accountability journalism about the challenges people living with severe mental illness face in Texas reveals a state in crisis and a serious bureaucratic breakdown with devastating human consequences. The systematic failure in Texas set against the stories of individual families is both urgent and heartbreaking and a model of great journalism. Drawing on a long-standing personal interest in care for those living with mental illness, her investigation illustrates a complex web of state level policies and failures that have a dire impact on the people who need the services the most.” – Raney Aronson-Rath

National Reporting

Jose A. Del Real, 31, of The Washington Post for “Truth, Trust and Conspiracy Theories in America,” a series examining viral disinformation, how it spreads and the impact it has on the personal relationships of those involved.

“As we try to navigate this complicated world we are living in, chock full of divisions and conspiracy theories that lead to anger and hatred, it is refreshing to read the humanity that Jose Del Real put into his stories on this very perplexing issue. He treats his characters with respect and compassion and helps the reader try to understand what moves them. Jose Del Real is a gem who so eloquently reminds us that conspiracy theories are part of American history and that only truth and trust can attempt to overcome them.” – María Elena Salinas

International Reporting

Erika Lantz, 31, and Elin Lantz Lesser, 30, of RococoPunch and iHeartRadio for “The Turning, The Sisters Who Left” a podcast series exploring the insular world of the Missionaries of Charity, the religious order founded by Mother Theresa, and the darker side of devotion.

“Sometimes it is the intimate, the human, that unexpectedly illuminates the great world for us. That was the case for me with ‘The Turning: The Sisters Who Left.’ In the anguished words of women who had entered the Missionaries of Charity, the religious order founded by Mother Teresa, I heard the classic dilemma of women’s lives: sacrifice versus freedom. Following faith and seeking to serve the poor, these women had discovered a system of isolation and control that began to break their spirits. Their stories were told with such care and sensitivity that their struggles lived within me afterward, less a podcast, more a world.” – Anna Quindlen

Mentoring Award

Fred Hiatt, editorial editor of The Washington Post, was honored posthumously with the Richard M. Clurman Award for his personal commitment to counsel, nurture and inspire young journalists.

“Somehow, Fred saw through the writer I was to the writer I wanted to be, one I couldn’t have become without his patience and support, one encouraging email at a time…Fred must have had access to some reservoir of time that most people do not, because I can name dozens of people who feel the same gratitude for the doors he opened.” – Alexandra Petri of The Washington Post.

In addition to Aronson-Rath, Salinas, Quindlen and Stephens, the Livingston national judging panel includes Ken Auletta of The New Yorker; John Harris of Politico; Matt Murray of The Wall Street Journal; Clarence Page of the Chicago Tribune; Lydia Polgreen of Gimlet; and Kara Swisher of The New York Times and Vox Media.

More on the winners here.

Announcing the 2022 Livingston Award Finalists

Wallace House and the University of Michigan announced today the 2022 Livingston Awards finalists in local, national, and international reporting. The awards support young journalists and honor the best reporting and storytelling by journalists under the age of 35 across all forms of journalism. The 52 finalist selections were chosen from more than 450 entries for work released in 2021.

This year’s winners will be announced on June 8, 2022, at an in-person awards ceremony hosted by Dean Baquet, long-serving Livingston Award judge and executive editor of The New York Times.  

“As the world continues to move through various types of upheaval, it’s encouraging to see younger journalists taking on and tackling important and complex stories,” said Wallace House Director Lynette Clemetson, Wallace House Director. 

Celebrating its 41st year, the awards bolster the work of young reporters, create the next generation of journalism leaders and mentors, and advance civic engagement around powerful storytelling. The sponsors include the University of Michigan, Knight Foundation, the Indian Trail Charitable Foundation, the Mollie Parnis Livingston Foundation, Christiane Amanpour, the Fred and Judy Wilpon Foundation, and Dr. Gil Omenn and Martha Darling.

The Livingston Awards regional judges read all qualifying entries to select the finalists in local, national and international reporting. The regional judging panel includes Molly Ball, national political correspondent, TIME; Stella Chávez, immigration and demographics reporter, KERA Public Radio (Dallas); Chris Davis, executive editor and Vice-President of Investigative Journalism, Gannett; David Greene, host, “Ukraine Stories,” Fearless Media; Stephen Henderson, host, “Detroit Today,” WDET; Shirley Leung, columnist and associate editor, The Boston Globe; and Amna Nawaz, senior national correspondent, PBS “NewsHour.”

The Livingston Awards national judges review all finalist entries and select the winners. The national judges are Raney Aronson-Rath, executive producer, “FRONTLINE”; Ken Auletta, author and media and communications writer, The New Yorker; John Harris, co-founder, POLITICO; Matt Murray, editor in chief, The Wall Street Journal; Clarence Page, syndicated columnist; Lydia Polgreen, head of content, Gimlet; Anna Quindlen, author; María Elena Salinas, contributor, ABC News; Bret Stephens, op-ed columnist, The New York Times; and Kara Swisher, executive producer, Code Conference and host of the podcasts “Sway” and “Pivot.”

We present the 2022 Livingston Awards finalists and invite you to review their work here.

Local Reporting

  • Jessica Bakeman, New York Magazine
  • Sarah Blaskey, Miami Herald
  • Zoë Carpenter, The Nation
  • Rebecca Ellis, Oregon Public Broadcasting
  • Callie Ferguson, The Bangor Daily News
  • Amelia Ferrell Knisely and Molly Born, Mountain State Spotlight and The GroundTruth Project
  • Marie J. French, POLITICO
  • Amy Julia Harris, The New York Times
  • Madison Hopkins and Cecilia Reyes, Better Government Association and the Chicago Tribune
  • Cary Junior II, Detroit Free Press
  • Mark Keierleber, The 74
  • Danae King, The Columbus Dispatch
  • Kate McGee, The Texas Tribune
  • Mandy McLaren, The Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)
  • Brittny Mejia, Los Angeles Times 
  • Jessica Miller, Paighten Harkins, Abby Ellis, Taylor Eldridge, Sam Stecklow and Muna Mohamed FRONTLINE in partnership with The Salt Lake Tribune
  • Jessica Seaman, The Denver Post
  • Andrew Seidman, The Philadelphia Inquirer
  • Alex Stuckey, Houston Chronicle
  • Evey Wilson Wetherbee, Georgia Public Broadcasting 

 National Reporting

  • Jess Bidgood, The Boston Globe
  • Jamelle Bouie, The New York Times
  • Tony Briscoe, ProPublica
  • Claire Hannah Collins, Los Angeles Times
  • Maddy Crowell, The Atavist Magazine
  • Jose A. Del Real, The Washington Post
  • Hannah Dreyfus, ProPublica
  • Katelyn Ferral, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
  • Maggie Freleng and Julieta Martinelli, Futuro Media/PRX
  • Drew Harwell, The Washington Post
  • Baxter Holmes, ESPN
  • Lauren Leatherby, The New York Times
  • Claire McNear, The Ringer
  • Laura C. Morel and Mohamed Al Elew, Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting
  • Cecilia Nowell, New York Magazine’s The Cut
  • Rita Omokha, ELLE
  • Lizzie Presser, ProPublica
  • Roman Stubbs, The Washington Post
  • Saidu Tejan-Thomas Jr., Gimlet Media
  • Kaveh Waddell and Maanvi Singh, Consumer Reports and The Guardian

 International Reporting

  • Rachael Bale, National Geographic
  • Max Bearak, Júlia Ledur and Dylan Moriarty, The Washington Post
  • Khalid Bencherif, In These Times
  • Olivia Carville, Bloomberg Businessweek
  • Gloria Dickie, Scientific American 
  • Thomas Gibbons-Neff, The New York Times
  • Sanket Jain, The Verge (Vox Media)
  • May Jeong, New York Magazine
  • Olivia Konotey-Ahulu, Bloomberg News
  • Erika Lantz and Elin Lantz Lesser, Rococo Punch and iHeartRadio
  • Louisa Loveluck and Mustafa Salim, The Washington Post
  • David Mora, VICE News

Announcing the 2021 Livingston Award Finalists

Wallace House and the University of Michigan announced today the 2021 Livingston Awards finalists in local, national and international reporting. The awards support young journalists and honor the best reporting and storytelling by journalists under the age of 35 across all forms of journalism. The 50 finalist selections were chosen from more than 500 entries for work released in 2020.

This year’s Livingston Award winners will be announced at a virtual ceremony on June 10, 2021. Hosted by  Christiane Amanpour, former Livingston Award winner and judge, the event is open to everyone. Information and registration can be found here.  

“We are proud and honored to acknowledge and showcase the reporting of this year’s Livingston Award finalists, who produced exceptional works of journalism despite the numerous intersecting challenges facing the nation today,” said Wallace House Director Lynette Clemetson. “That we received more than 500 strong entries this year is testament to the conviction and dedication of young journalists to pursue stories that need to be told, especially in the most difficult times.”

Celebrating its 40th year, the awards bolster the work of young reporters, create the next generation of journalism leaders and mentors, and advance civic engagement around powerful storytelling. The sponsors include the University of Michigan, Knight Foundation, the Indian Trail Charitable Foundation, the Mollie Parnis Livingston Foundation, Christiane Amanpour, the Fred and Judy Wilpon Foundation, and Dr. Gil Omenn and Martha Darling.

The Livingston Awards regional judges read all qualifying entries to select the finalists in local, national and international reporting. The regional judging panel includes Molly Ball, national political correspondent, Time; Stella Chávez, immigration and demographics reporter, KERA Public Radio (Dallas); Chris Davis, executive editor and Vice-President of Investigative Journalism, Gannett; David Greene, former host, “Morning Edition,” NPR; Stephen Henderson, host, “Detroit Today,” WDET; Shirley Leung, columnist and associate editor, The Boston Globe; and Amna Nawaz, senior national correspondent, PBS “NewsHour.”

The Livingston Awards national judges review all finalist entries and select the winners. The national judges are Raney Aronson-Rath, executive producer, “Frontline,”; Ken Auletta, author and media and communications writer, The New Yorker; Dean Baquet, executive editor, The New York Times; John Harris, co-founder, Politico; Matt Murray, editor in chief, The Wall Street Journal; Clarence Page, syndicated columnist; Lydia Polgreen, head of content, Gimlet; Anna Quindlen, author; María Elena Salinas, contributor, CBS News; Bret Stephens, op-ed columnist, The New York Times; and Kara Swisher, executive producer, Code Conference and host of the podcasts “Sway” and “Pivot.”

We present the 2021 Livingston Awards finalists and invite you to review their work here.

Local Reporting

  • Haley BeMiller, Green Bay Press-Gazette
  • Lauren Caruba, San Antonio Express-News
  • Lakeidra Chavis, The Trace in partnership with The Chicago Sun-Times
  • Ann Choi, Rachel Holiday Smith and Will Welch, The City (NY, NY)
  • Jessica Contrera, The Washington Post
  • Courtney Crowder, The Des Moines Register
  • Andrew Ford, Asbury Park Press in partnership with ProPublica
  • Eileen Grench, The City (NY, NY)
  • Samantha Hogan and Agnel Philip, The Maine Monitor and ProPublica with support from Report for America
  • Lizzie Johnson, San Francisco Chronicle
  • Josh Kaplan, DCist in partnership with Spotlight DC
  • Soumya Karlamangla, Los Angeles Times
  • Ana Ley, The Virginian-Pilot
  • Nichole Manna, Fort Worth Star-Telegram
  • Jessica Miller, The Salt Lake Tribune
  • Thad Moore, The Post and Courier (Charleston, S.C.)
  • Bridget Read, New York Magazine
  • Eric Sandy, Cleveland Scene
  • Joshua Sharpe, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

 National Reporting

  • Kenzi Abou-Sabe, Adiel Kaplan and Kit Ramgopal, NBC News Investigative Unit
  • Hamed Aleaziz, BuzzFeed News
  • Bethany Barnes, Tampa Bay Times
  • Eric Boodman, STAT
  • Sydney Brownstone, Scott Greenstone and Will James, KNKX Public Radio and The Seattle Times
  • Elizabeth Bruenig, The New York Times
  • Chabeli Carrazana, The 19th
  • Elizabeth Dias, The New York Times
  • Hannah Dreier, The Washington Post
  • Blake Ellis and Melanie Hicken, CNN
  • Katie Engelhart, The California Sunday Magazine
  • Alissa Escarce, Max Siegelbaum and Mazin Sidahmed, Documented, Latino USA and Type Investigations
  • Eli Hager, The Marshall Project in partnership with The Atlantic
  • Ellen Huet and Shawn Wen, Bloomberg News
  • Jamiles Lartey, The Marshall Project
  • Daniel Lombroso, The Atlantic
  • Alysia Santo and Elaine Sheldon, The Marshall Project in partnership with FRONTLINE and America ReFramed on WORLD Channel
  • Emily Shugerman, The Daily Beast
  • Roman Stubbs, The Washington Post
  • Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic 

 International Reporting

  • Josh Baker, FRONTLINE
  • Luisa Conlon, Gabriela Dematteis and Paola Ramos, Vice News
  • Maddy Crowell, Virginia Quarterly Review
  • Chao Deng, The Wall Street Journal
  • Caitlin Dickerson, The New York Times
  • Emily Feng, NPR
  • Ruby Gaviola, Lauryn Schroeder and Kate Morrissey, San Diego Union-Tribune
  • Claire Harbage and Kat Lonsdorf, NPR in partnership with the John Alexander Project
  • Isayen Herrera and Julie Turkewitz, The New York Times
  • Emily Keen and Isobel Yeung, Vice News
  • Timothy McLaughlin, The Atlantic
  • J. Weston Phippen, POLITICO

More on the finalists and links to their work »