Finalist, Business Reporting: Christian Middleton
“Business Boondoggles in Rural Mississippi Entry”
Additional 2022 Awards:
Mississippi Business Journal
Winner, 50 Leading Businesswomen Awards, 2022: Kimberly Griffin
Editor & Publisher Magazine
Winner, Editors Extraordinaire, 2022: Donna Ladd
Green Eyeshade Awards
Third Place, Deadline Reporting: Ashton Pittman
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2021 SPJ Diamond Awards (honors 2020 work)
Winner, Diamond Journalist of the Year: Ashton Pittman
See Ashton’s MFP reporting archive here
JUDGES’ COMMENTS: This is an amazing writer who knows how to get to the heart of a story and make it mean something to the reader. It doesn’t seem to matter that the topic is. Ashton tackles it with a keen eye for detail and dedication to holding those accountable when needed. Great work!
1st Place, Robert S. McCord Freedom of Information Award: Ashton Pittman, Donna Ladd and Christian Middleton
Bringing Racist, Sexist UM Emails, Climate Report to Public view (collection link)
UM Emails Interactive Timeline
JUDGES’ COMMENTS: “A truly amazing series of reports. There were so many back-stories that at times it was hard to know the players. Yet, in the end, it all fit together. The public had a right to know what was going on at the University of Mississippi and the Mississippi Free Press delivered. Nicely done.”
1st Place, Investigative Reporting: Ashton Pittman
“The Fabric Is Torn in Oxford’: UM Emails Investigation”
JUDGES’ COMMENTS: “These stories present a troubling pattern at a major institution.”
1st Place, Public Service:
Ashton Pittman, William Pittman, John McGee, Jarius Smith, Aliyah Veal, Taylor Hathorn, Jamar Muhammad, Julian Mills, Allie Jordan, Donna Ladd
Mississippi Trusted Elections Project: Stories + Infographics
JUDGES’ COMMENTS: “An extraordinary series of stories documenting efforts by Mississippi officials to change polling locations of thousands of voters with very little communication. Only when confronted by the truth from the newspaper’s reporters, did state officials make any effort to correct problems. This is a great public service. Kudos to the team that obviously worked tirelessly to help guarantee the right to vote!”
1st Place, Health, Science & Environment Writing, Print/Online: Aliyah Veal
Grocery Shopping While Black: Fighting Food Insecurity In Mississippi During COVID-19
Feeding Local: Mississippi CSAs, Farms Beacons Of Light During COVID-19 Pandemic
‘Food Defines Us’: Utica Arts
Read original article by clicking here.