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Today, the Livingston Awards honored exceptional journalists under the age of 35 for outstanding work in local, national and international reporting. This year’s winning stories include a local investigation into cases of abuse in New Hampshire’s taxpayer-funded, state-regulated disability care system; the devastating human impact of the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE’s) sweeping policy changes; and powerful documentary videos sharing first-person accounts from three men detained by ICE and deported to a notorious prison in El Salvador. The $10,000 prizes are for work released in 2025.

The Livingston Awards also honored Martin Baron, former executive editor of The Washington Post, The Boston Globe and The Miami Herald, with the Richard M. Clurman Award for mentoring. Named for the late Richard M. Clurman, former chief of correspondents for Time-Life News Service and the architect of the Livingston Awards, the prize is presented annually to a veteran journalist who has had a profound impact on the development and careers of journalists.

Livingston Awards national judges Evan Osnos, staff writer of The New Yorker, Stephen Henderson, founder and executive advisor to BridgeDetroit, and Kara Swisher, host of the podcasts “On with Kara Swisher” and “Pivot,” introduced the winners at a ceremony hosted by Livingston Awards emeritus judge María Elena Salinas, formerly of Univision, ABC News and CBS News. Dean Baquet, Livingston Awards emeritus judge and former executive editor of The New York Times, presented Baron with the Clurman Award for mentoring.

“The tenacity and humanity coursing through the work of this year’s Livingston Award winners is a testament to the irreplaceable role of deeply reported journalism in our lives,” said Lynette Clemetson, director of the Wallace House Center for Journalists and the Livingston Awards. “When we move past outrage loops, algorithms and AI content, it is still rigorously reported, thoughtfully produced human stories that illuminate the real-life consequences of our politics and policies.”

Celebrating its 45th year, the awards bolster the work of young reporters, cultivate the next generation of journalism leaders and mentors, and advance civic engagement through powerful storytelling. A year-round program, the awards provide industry training and create opportunities for public engagement through events where winners share their stories and offer transparency to their reporting process.

The 2026 winners for work released in 2025 are listed below.

Local Reporting

William Skipworth, 27, of The New Hampshire Bulletin for “A System of Harm,” an investigative series revealing systemic failures and horrific cases of abuse in New Hampshire’s taxpayer-funded and state-regulated disability care system. Drawing on court records, official documents and interviews with victims’ families, Skipworth chronicled vulnerable individuals subjected to daily beatings, rape and sexual assault, along with caregiver neglect that in some cases resulted in death.

“We often aim to measure our moral progress by how we care for the most vulnerable. Yet, when William Skipworth tried to assess a system touting its treatment of children and adults with disabilities, he met a wall of official silence. It would have been easy to move on in a newsroom of only three reporters. Instead, his skillful, tenacious quest brought lucid humanity to a pattern of hidden abuses, seizing public attention and empowering families to speak for those who cannot.”

— Evan Osnos, Livingston Awards national judge

National Reporting

Hannah Natanson, 29, of The Washington Post, for “Trump’s Reshaping of the Federal Government,” a series that revealed the far-reaching impact of DOGE’s sweeping policy changes. Through social media and encrypted Signal communications, dozens and sometimes hundreds of government employees wrote to her daily, describing their despair at seeing agencies and the mission they believed in crippled, and providing firsthand accounts and insights into inefficiencies stemming from the DOGE cuts.

“The Trump administration’s remake of the federal government calls journalism to some of its highest purposes: exacting comprehensive coverage; sensitive portraits of results and impact; careful reconciliation of promised outcomes versus real effects and consequences. Hannah Natanson of The Washington Post aces all three in her series of stories about the radical changes in Washington, with help from a network of more than 1,200 sources and unflinching determination. It matters immensely, in a time of both quiet and unwieldy oppression of counternarrative, that Natanson’s work continues despite an FBI raid of her home. This was not just journalism of excellence. It was journalism powered by courage.”

— Stephen Henderson, Livingston Awards national judge

International Reporting

Gerardo del Valle, 34, Alejandro Bonilla Suárez, 33 and Edwin Corona Ramos, 33, of ProPublica, The Texas Tribune, Alianza Rebelde Investiga and Cazadores de Fake News for “Taken to CECOT,” video documentaries centered on three men’s first-person accounts of being detained by ICE and deported to a prison in El Salvador accused of widespread human rights abuses, despite reporting finding no known criminal records or evidence of gang affiliations for any of the three men. In Spanish with English subtitles, the videos humanize their experiences and document a dramatic shift in U.S. policy that tests both moral and legal boundaries.

“Well before recent reporting on the government targeting and deporting people with no criminal records, this team of reporters exposed the practice where simple immigration violations resulted in horrific torture at the CECOT facility in El Salvador. The investigation found that more than half of the 238 deportees were labeled as having no criminal record in the U.S., and only six had violent convictions. Nearly half were deported in the middle of their immigration cases. ‘Taken to CECOT’ is the story of our age right now, or carelessness combined with cruelty, where the demonization of the immigrant results in a nightmare for justice too.”

— Kara Swisher, Livingston Awards national judge

Mentoring Award

Martin Baron, who held the top editorial role at The Washington Post (2013-2021), The Boston Globe (2001-2012) and The Miami Herald (2000-2001), was honored with the Richard M. Clurman Award for his commitment to counseling, nurturing and inspiring young journalists. Throughout his distinguished career, Baron nurtured newsroom talent and mentored generations of journalists, extending his support beyond the news organizations he led to journalists elsewhere, including advising the founders of El Planeta, a Spanish-language news outlet serving Boston and New England’s Latino communities. In a video tribute, generations of journalists reflected on Baron’s mentorship and his lasting influence on their careers.

“For me, and countless others, Marty’s influence centers around his quiet and steady counsel. Amid the demands of leadership, he somehow remained accessible, a graciousness that extended to summer interns and to journalists who never worked for him.”
— Tracy Jan, investigative editor, ProPublica

More about the Livingston Award judges here.

More on the 2026 Livingston Award winners and their work here.

Today the Livingston Awards honored exceptional journalists under the age of 35 for outstanding work in local, national and international reporting. This year’s winning stories include a local investigation into how Hartford, Connecticut’s public school system graduated a student with honors who, after 12 years in the district, could not read or write; a powerful podcast series exposing the systemic struggles of those living with severe mental illness in the U.S.; and a deeply reported investigation into the health and environmental consequences of Western oil operations on the village of Berezovka, Kazakhstan. The $10,000 prizes are for work released in 2024.

The Livingston Awards also honored Norman Pearlstine with the Richard M. Clurman Award for mentoring. Throughout a career spanning leadership roles at The Wall Street Journal, Time Inc., Bloomberg L.P., and the Los Angeles Times, Pearlstine has championed newsroom talent and guided generations of journalists. Named for the late Richard M. Clurman, former chief of correspondents for Time-Life News Service and the architect of the Livingston Awards, the prize is presented annually to a veteran journalist who has had a profound impact on the development and careers of journalists.

Livingston Awards national judges María Elena Salinas, independent journalist, formerly of ABC News and Univision, Lydia Polgreen, opinion columnist at The New York Times, Sally Buzbee, news editor for the United States and Canada, Reuters and Sewell Chan, senior fellow at the Annenberg Center of Communication Leadership and Policy, introduced the winners at a ceremony hosted by Livingston Awards judge Audie Cornish, anchor of “CNN This Morning with Audie Cornish.”

“At a time of escalating efforts to discredit the press and undermine the role of journalism in our society, recognizing the work of these young reporters is both urgent and necessary,” said Lynette Clemetson, Livingston Awards director. “Their stories uncovered fresh angles on familiar issues and offered compelling entry points that refocused our attention and spurred discourse and action, reminding us of journalism’s role in a healthy democracy.” 

Celebrating its 44th year, the awards bolster the work of young reporters, cultivate the next generation of journalism leaders and mentors, and advance civic engagement through powerful storytelling. Major sponsors include the University of Michigan, Knight Foundation, the Indian Trail Charitable Foundation, the Mollie Parnis Livingston Foundation and the Hochman and Allard Families, Christiane Amanpour, the Judy and Fred Wilpon Family Foundation, Dr. Gil Omenn and Martha Darling, CNN and The Joyce Foundation.

The 2025 winners for work released in 2024 are listed below.

Local Reporting

Jessika Harkay, 24, of The Connecticut Mirror for “Aleysha Ortiz,” a three-part story following a graduate of Hartford Public High School who completed her education without acquiring the ability to read or write. Despite attending Hartford public schools since age six and graduating with honors, Ortiz’s learning disabilities were inadequately addressed by the school system. Her case has sparked bipartisan concern among Connecticut lawmakers, highlighting systemic issues in special education and prompting calls for increased accountability and reform within the state’s educational institutions.

“The first few paragraphs of the article grab you. How is it possible that a young lady who graduated from high school and is now entering college was never taught how to read and write? Aleysha Ortiz’s story is fascinating not just because of the obvious failure of the Hartford public school system, but because of how this remarkable young woman is fighting for her right to learn in spite of her learning disabilities. Jessika Harkay, a 24-year-old education reporter for The Connecticut Mirror, stumbled upon Aleysha’s story and ran with it. In doing so she gave Aleysha a voice and prompted efforts to make sure this doesn’t happen again.“
— María Elena Salinas, Livingston Awards national judge

National Reporting

Esmy Jimenez, 30 and Sydney Brownstone, 34, The Seattle Times in partnership with KUOW Public Radio, for three episodes from Season One of the podcast “Lost Patients.” Their stories explored the visceral experience of psychosis, the anguish of families whose loved ones are being endlessly “churned” through shelters, jails and hospitals, and the discovery of little-known archives — prompting descendants to discover institutionalized relatives for the first time.

“When faced with a catastrophe that defies easy explanation, let alone solutions, the human impulse is usually to look away. But when Esmy Jimenez and Sydney Brownstone began reporting on people with
persistent psychosis, they did what great journalists have always done: look deeper, dig further and never lose sight of the human stories at the heart of America’s mental health crisis. There are few villains and no saints in their panoramic podcast ‘Lost Patients,’ which reaches back through decades — even centuries — to try to understand how as a society we abandoned the most gravely mentally ill people, and offer us an opportunity to rethink how we treat the most vulnerable among us.”
— Lydia Polgreen, Livingston Awards national judge

International Reporting

Nicole Sadek, 26, International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) for “The Lost Village,” an investigation into how toxic emissions from Western oil operations in Berezovka, Kazakhstan, led to a suspected wave of illness and the forced relocation of residents. In 2014, about 20 children at the village’s only school fainted and suffered seizures. Though the companies funded the relocation starting in 2015, they never accepted responsibility for the health crisis and environmental devastation.

“Nicole Sadek brought tenacity and sensitivity to the story of a decade-old tragedy – the relocation of an entire village in northwestern Kazakhstan because of serious health issues suffered by its people linked to a nearby Western-run oil and gas field. Her reporting, with its description of the difficulties the villagers of Berezovka faced in securing assistance or accountability, allowed a wider audience to understand this story and its clear warnings for the future.”
— Sally Buzbee, Livingston Awards national judge

Mentoring Award

Norman Pearlstine, who held top editorial roles at some of the nation’s most influential news organizations, including executive editor of the Los Angeles Times, editor-in-chief and chief content officer at Time Inc., chief content officer at Bloomberg L.P., managing editor and executive editor at The Wall Street Journal and executive editor at Forbes, was honored with the Richard M. Clurman Award for his commitment to counseling, nurturing and inspiring young journalists. In a video tribute, generations of journalists reflected on Pearlstine’s mentorship and his lasting influence on their careers.

“While many can claim Norm as a former boss, I feel particularly fortunate. He saw potential in me that I sometimes couldn’t see myself, building my confidence with each challenge he entrusted me to handle.”
— Kimi Yoshino, The Baltimore Banner

In addition to Buzbee, Chan, Cornish, Polgreen and Salinas, the Livingston national judges panel includes Raney Aronson-Rath, Matt Murray, Bret Stephens, and Kara Swisher.

More on the winners here.

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 include a local news investigation exposing the systematic failures of Maine’s illusive probate courts, a documentary podcast probing timely gender-specific health challenges, and a visually-driven investigation retracing the tragic voyages of West African migrants lost in the Atlantic Ocean on their quest to reach Europe. The $10,000 prizes are for work released in 2023.

The Livingston Awards also honored Kevin Merida, former executive editor of the Los Angeles Times, with the Richard M. Clurman Award for mentoring. The 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 award 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 Kara Swisher of New York Magazine, Lydia Polgreen of The New York Times, Raney Aronson-Rath of Frontline and Lynette Clemetson, director of Wallace House, introduced the winners at a ceremony hosted by Livingston Awards emeritus judge Ken Auletta.

“We are honored to recognize this exceptional reporting that uses text, audio and visual storytelling to full effect,” said Lynette Clemetson. “It is especially inspiring to honor the doggedness of these journalists during a period of painful retrenchment in many news organizations. The persistence of young reporters to pursue challenging work with such ambition and creativity pushes our entire industry forward.” 

Celebrating its 43rd year, the awards bolster the work of young reporters, cultivate 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 Joyce Foundation.

The 2024 winners for work released in 2023 are listed below.

Local Reporting

Samantha Hogan, 30, of The Maine Monitor for “Maine’s Part-Time Court,” a year-long investigation into the state’s illusive probate courts. Her reporting exposed stories of individuals whose life savings may have been pocketed by their conservators and revealed eight unexplained deaths of people who were under Maine’s state guardianship.

“Samantha Hogan’s multi-year investigation into an alarming lack of oversight within Maine’s probate courts is a shining example of local journalism at its finest. Her efforts were creative and meticulous: She conducted in-depth interviews with those in the probate system. She crafted and sent surveys to the probate courts. She dove into the research on alternative probate systems. And she submitted public records requests that ultimately revealed the suspicious deaths of eight people under the court’s guardianship. Samantha’s reporting catalyzed grassroots change and strengthened civic engagement and democracy.”
— Kara Swisher, Livingston Awards national judge

National Reporting

Allison Behringer, 33 and Lila Hassan, 28, KCRW Public Radio, for three episodes from Season Four of the podcast “Bodies.” Their stories explored early-onset puberty, postpartum psychosis and the fight for abortion training in a Post-Roe America through the lens of feminism, systemic discrimination and marginalization.

“I have done a lot of tough and dangerous reporting — interviewing warlords, trekking across deserts, dodging bullets in urban warfare. But years of experience have taught me that one of the hardest things to do is to get children to talk — openly, authentically and enthusiastically talk. Allison Behringer and Lila Hassan got kids to open up about some of the most intimate and private parts of their lives — their changing bodies. The “Bodies” episodes honored here are stories of huge social and political importance told in the most intimate and human ways. Innovative and first-rate journalism from start to finish.”
— Lydia Polgreen, Livingston Awards national judge

International Reporting

Renata Brito, 31, The Associated Press for “Adrift/36 Days,” a visually-driven investigation that seamlessly weaves together graphic illustrations, evocative imagery and powerful storytelling. Through meticulous detail, Brito reconstructs the journey of a boat discovered on Tobago’s coast, identifies its deceased passengers and humanizes the plight of migrants.

“Renata Brito’s investigation into a ‘ghost boat’ found in Trinidad and Tobago turned into a two-year cinematic investigation tracking the fatal journey for 43 Mauritanian immigrants trying to make their way to the Canary Islands and ultimately Europe. Despite challenges in accessing information from different governments and not knowing who might have been on this boat, she persisted. The results brought closure to families who had previously been unable to declare their sons dead. Her investigation also spurred a wider look into the ‘ghost boat’ phenomenon and resulted in Renata documenting another horrific journey of a boat at sea for 36 days and the deaths of 63 of the 101 migrants onboard.”
— Raney Aronson-Rath, Livingston Awards national judge

Mentoring Award

Kevin Merida, former executive editor of the Los Angeles Times, former editor-in-chief of The Undefeated and former managing editor of The Washington Post, was honored with the Richard M. Clurman Award for his commitment to counseling, nurturing and inspiring young journalists. In a video tribute, journalists from the Los Angeles Times, ESPN and The Washington Post talked about Merida’s encouragement of young reporters and his influence on their careers.

“Nearly every piece of journalism that changed me, challenged me and upped my game as a reporter had Kevin’s imprint and genius behind it. He is the kind of leader I now strive to be – empowering, innovative, accessible, no B.S. He showed so many of us that we could lead in newsrooms as ourselves.”
— Krissah Thompson, The Washington Post

In addition to Swisher, Polgreen and Aronson-Rath, the Livingston national judges panel includes Sally Buzbee, Sewell Chan, Audie Cornish, Matt Murray, María Elena Salinas and Bret Stephens.

More on the winners here.

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 Chan, Murray and Salinas, 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.