The Post and Courier wins Pulitzer Prize for domestic violence series
Journalism's highest honor went to The Post and Courier (Charleston, S.C.) on Monday afternoon for its series on domestic violence – a series that has spurred legislation that has an uncertain future in the Legislature.
The Pulitzer Public Service gold medal was awarded for the P&C's "Till Death Do Us Part" series that was published across five editions in August. Reporters Doug Pardue, Glenn Smith, Jennifer Berry Hawes and Natalie Caula Hauff authored the series. Last year, the gold medal – the highest Pulitzer honor – went to The Washington Post and The Guardian for exposing widespread secret surveillance on Americans.
The Post and Courier's work told the tales of domestic abuse survivors and of the 300 women in the Palmetto State who have been shot, stabbed, strangled, beaten, bludgeoned or burned to death by men during the past decade while legislators did little to quell the bloodshed.
A panel of seven judges from news media and academia called the newspaper's work "riveting."
"We are humbled and honored to receive such distinguished praise," Mitch Pugh, the newspaper's executive editor, said. "But this series was really about making safer the lives of women in South Carolina. To see our infamously intransigent state Legislature jump into action was deeply rewarding."
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In addition:
- Lisa Falkenberg of the Houston Chronicle was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
- Adam Zyglis of The Buffalo News was honored with the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning
- Ziva Branstetter and Cary Aspinwall of the Tulsa World were finalists in the Local Reporting category for courageous reporting on the execution process in Oklahoma after a botched execution – reporting that began a national discussion.
- Marisa Taylor, Jonathan Landay and Ali Watkins of McClatchy Newspapers were finalists in the National Reporting category for timely coverage of the Senate Intelligence Committee's report on CIA torture, demonstrating initiative and perseverance in overcoming government efforts to hide the detail.