Statesman recognized for its coverage of Uvalde, Medicaid waiver program and military families
American-Statesman journalists recently received national recognition for their work, including groundbreaking reporting after the Uvalde school shooting and coverage exposing dysfunction in the state system for at-home care for people with disabilities.
Executive Editor Manny García was honored Feb. 23 in Washington, D.C., with the Benjamin C. Bradlee Editor of the Year award from the National Press Foundation for leading what the organization called the Statesman’s “audacious and inclusive” reporting after the Uvalde shooting.
García guided the Statesman’s decisions in publishing a video from Uvalde's Robb Elementary School showing the law enforcement breakdown May 24 after a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers. Investigative reporter Tony Plohetski became the first journalist in the nation to obtain the video, and the Statesman, which published the video in partnership with KVUE-TV, navigated unique and difficult editorial decisions in deciding what to show.
García also quickly mobilized a group of Spanish-speaking journalists in the U.S. and Mexico to translate a 77-page Texas House report — the most comprehensive investigative report of the shooting and response — to provide to the majority Hispanic Uvalde community. Statesman staffers delivered 10,000 copies to the grieving community as a public service.
Plohetski also is one of five finalists for the Anthony Shadid Award for Ethics in Journalism, awarded through the University of Wisconsin-Madison to journalists who “exhibit a strong commitment to ethical journalism by acting with integrity, honoring ethical principles in their reporting or resisting pressure to compromise ethical principles.”
Plohetski received the honor for his joint reporting with KVUE on the Uvalde school video. Judges noted that, according to the nomination, “Plohetski and team first had to determine whether they had a public duty to publish the video and then navigate layers of editorial and ethical decisions in shaping its release.”
The winner will be announced later this month.
A Statesman investigation also is one of 24 semifinalists for the Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting, which recognizes “reporting that best promotes effective and ethical conduct of government, the making of public policy or the practice of politics.”
A team of data reporters, Caroline Ghisolfi, Plohetski and former Statesman reporter Nicole Foy produced the multipart series “Disabled & Abandoned” that revealed the plight of clients receiving care through the state’s Medicaid waiver program and of caregivers tasked with helping them with daily living.
“Judges deemed that (semifinalists) were of extremely high quality and fit the prize’s criteria on U.S. policy and so are worthy of public recognition,” the awards committee wrote.
This is the second time in three years the Statesman has been a Goldsmith semifinalist. Plohetski was recognized in 2021 for his work to expose the death of Javier Amber II, who died in Williamson County while in the custody of the sheriff’s office. The investigation led to multiple indictments and a new state law.
Statesman metro columnist Bridget Grumet also recently received an Excellence in Media Award from the Texas Veterans Commission for a column she published on a food bank at Fort Hood that highlighted food insecurity for military families and veterans.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: National Press Foundation, Goldsmith Prize honor Statesman journalists
