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I think I am supposed to be humble and tell you that we don’t work for awards here at The Assembly. That we don’t need validation. That we let the work speak for itself.
But we do appreciate external approval. And we are overjoyed when people beyond our newsroom, loyal readers, and even our state see the impact and value of our journalism. Which is why we were recently thrilled to learn that we won two national Edward R. Murrow Awards, among the highest honors in digital journalism. The Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) organizes the annual awards, which will be celebrated at a gala in New York City next month.
The first, for overall excellence—the top prize for a digital outlet of our size—recognizes our body of work last year. The package included our reporting on Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson and investigations into the Medicaid Estate Recovery program and derelict properties owned by the family of former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch. It also included our whimsical-but-weighty exposé on America’s most famous stingray and a look at the path ahead for mountain towns post-Helene.
The second award, for sports reporting, recognizes Ren Larson’s reporting on state earmarks to the U.S. Performance Center, which led the state to flag $6.2 million in misspent funds.
“These honorees show what’s still possible in our industry—journalism so powerful and compelling it draws you in, illuminates and inspires,” said RTDNA Chair Colin Benedict on this year’s winners. “This is the true value so many journalists provide to the communities we serve every day.”
We were also glad to see Jordan Green’s first-person account for The Assembly of covering–and fleeing–right-wing extremist groups honored with August’s Sidney Award. The award, from the Sidney Hillman Foundation, recognizes “outstanding investigative journalism that exposes social and economic injustices.” Other winners this year included The Los Angeles Times and The Tampa Bay Times, so winning this award puts us in rarified company.
We also learned that several teams in The Assembly Network took home awards from the southern branch of the Society of Professional Journalists. Known as the Green Eyeshades, the awards recognize the best work across Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Our statewide email won first place in the newsletters category. The story we co-published last year with Inside Climate News on North Carolina’s natural gas buildout took first in feature writing, while an Assembly–CityView collaboration on PFAS in Fayetteville took second in environmental reporting.
INDY also took first in newspaper cover design, second in food and dining reporting, and third in criticism and reviews.
And finally, our team is taking home 36 awards from the North Carolina Press Association this month.
That includes our third year in a row winning the Duke University/Green-Rossiter Award Distinguished Newspaper Work in Higher Education Reporting.
Carli Brosseau and Sarah Nagem have been recognized with the Henry Lee Weathers Freedom of Information Award for their dogged pursuit of public records in Columbus County. (Michael Hewlett received the honor last year, so we’re also proud to maintain that momentum.
Contributing photographer Cornell Watson has been named the Hugh Morton Photographer of the Year, in recognition of his portfolio of work across multiple subjects last year. And our network-wide collaboration on Shotspotter won first place for city and county government reporting.
See the full list of our NCPA awards here, which includes contributions from nearly everyone across The Assembly Network.
So while we don’t do this work for external validation, it’s certainly nice when it happens. It’s recognition that local newsrooms like ours are out here doing the work and making a difference close to home. That we can hold our own among national newsrooms when it comes to impact and quality coverage. That our work has resonance within and well beyond North Carolina.
We’re proud of our team, but also grateful to the readers who have backed our mission and promoted our work. You believed in us before anyone else did, and we quite literally can’t keep doing high-quality journalism without your support. We hope you feel like part of these awards also belongs to you.
Kate Sheppard
Executive Editor
The Assembly