The fearless pursuit & expression of truth

The Michael Kelly Award honors a writer or editor whose work
exemplifies the quality that animated Michael Kelly’s career.

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2017 Winner: Shane Bauer

Mother Jones
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To chronicle the everyday realities inside a private prison, Shane Bauer spent four months as a corrections officer at a prison in Louisiana. His article depicted a facility barely able to function under cost-cutting pressures. Bauer’s article showed how insufficient staffing increased danger for guards and prisoners alike and how he struggled to maintain his humanity in a setting where physical and emotional assault was all too commonplace.

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2017 Michael Kelly Award Finalists

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Hannah Dreier

The Associated Press

Dreier vividly portrayed the impact of Venezuela’s economic collapse on the country’s citizens.

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Washington Post staff portraits in Washington, DC.

David Fahrenthold

The Washington Post

Fahrenthold debunked presidential candidate Donald Trump’s claims about his charitable giving.

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Selam Gebrekidan, Stephen Grey, Amina Ismail

Reuters

Three Reuters correspondents exposed the smuggling networks that profit from the transport of African refugees to Europe.

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Past Michael Kelly Award Winners

2016 Winner

NYTCREDIT: Earl Wilson/The New York Times2/10/2015

Alissa J. Rubin

The New York Times

With grit and grace, New York Times reporter Alissa J. Rubin wrote about the struggle of women in Afghanistan for dignity, equality, and respect. Intrigued by a report of an Afghan woman set afire after being accused of burning a Quran, Rubin disclosed how the woman was falsely charged and how the Afghan judicial system ineptly handled the case. She revealed how efforts to integrate women into the Afghan police force were backfiring, telling the story of a young mother who was murdered for becoming a policewoman. Rubin reported the articles at considerable personal risk, sometimes sleeping in her clothes so she could flee at a moment’s notice. That she undertook the assignments just months after being severely injured in a helicopter crash in Iraq speaks to Rubin’s commitment to bear witness.

2015 Winner

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Rania Abouzeid

Politico Magazine

Reported at great personal risk during three extended trips into Syria, “The Jihad Next Door” is the definitive account of the terrifying rise of jihadists in Syria. Winning unprecedented access to senior members of al-Qaeda’s Syrian franchise, as well as ISIS fighters, Rania Abouzeid discloses how al-Qaeda gained a foothold in Syria and ISIS used the Syrian conflict as an incubator to hatch its regional ambitions. “It’s a mammoth understatement to say that this was a hard task, especially for a freelancer,” Rania Abouzeid wrote in a letter accompanying the entry. “I work undercover and alone in Syria. I do my own fixing, translating, logistics and security… I am just a girl with a notepad and pen who has to figure out everything on my own.”

2014 Winner

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Rukmini Callimachi

The Associated Press

As the West Africa bureau chief for The Associated Press, Rukmini Callimachi consistently displayed a passion for the truth, reportorial ingenuity, and a commitment to the highest standards of journalism. At great risk to her own safety, Callimachi discovered a large trove of internal documents from al-Qaida that illuminated the internal workings of the terrorist organization and its strategy for the region. Reporting from Mali—again at great personal risk–she tracked down the bodies of six victims shot by the military, forcing the Malian government to initiate an investigation.

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