Seven IRE members were among winners of the 64th annual George Polk Awards in Journalism, announced today by Long Island University. The annual George Polk Awards in Journalism were established in 1949 by Long Island University to commemorate George Polk, a CBS Correspondent murdered in 1948 while reporting on the civil war in Greece. The following IRE members were honored in this year’s awards:
- David Corn of Mother Jones won the George Polk Award for Political Reporting for his work securing and publishing video of the “47 percent” remarks from 2012 presidential candidate Mitt Romney. See the full story.
- David Barboza of The New York Times won the George Polk Award for Foreign Reporting for “The Princelings,” a three-part series examining “how relatives of top Chinese officials have amassed vast wealth through businesses closely entwined with the state.” See the full story.
- John Hechinger of Bloomberg News, along with colleague Janet Lorin, won the George Polk Award for National Reporting for a series exposing financial abuses in higher education. Hechinger’s reporting revealed how the government hired private debt collectors who mislead borrowers about their options and collected more than $1 billion in commissions. See the full story.
- Gina Barton of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel won the George Polk Award for Local Reporting for coverage of the death of Derek Williams, a Milwaukee man who died in police custody after repeatedly telling police officers he could not breathe. See the full story.
- Sam Dolnick of the New York Times won the George Polk Award for Justice Reporting for the series “Unlocked,” which documented widespread abuse and mismanagement at privatized halfway houses, which had previously been hailed as innovative. See the full story.
- Ryan Gabrielson of California Watch won the George Polk Award for State Reporting for “Broken Shield,” a series documenting how California’s Office of Protective Services fails to stop abuse at state clinics. See the full story.
- David Barstow of The New York Times and Alejandra Xanic von Bertrab won the George Polk Award for Business Reporting for exposing the business practices of Walmart de Mexico. Barstow's reporting revealed how the company expanded through bribes and how claims of corruption were ignored by top Walmart executives. See the full story.
See the full release of Polk award winners here.
