The 41st annual Robert F. Kennedy Book and Journalism Awards honored exceptional works in print, radio, video and photography that exemplified RFK’s passion for human rights and social justice on Thursday in the Jack Morton Auditorium.
Journalism awards went to both students and professionals for pieces that examined societal issues on national and international levels. The book awards, founded by historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., honored two writers who examined the darker side of American politics.
Twelve journalism awards and two book awards were given out before an audience that included University President Steven Knapp, RFK’s widow Ethel Kennedy, and Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, the former lieutenant governor of Maryland.
The awards were judged by a variety of professionals from news outlets like The Washington Post, NBC, National Geographic, as well as universities and journalistic committees and foundations.
Clifford J. Levy of The New York Times won the International Print Award for his coverage of Kremlin rule in Russia, and staff reporters from The Charlotte Observer captured the Domestic Print Award for their reporting on the injustices in the poultry industry, a report which lead to state and federal investigations.
The Domestic Radio Award went to Laura Sullivan of National Public Radio for her coverage of two men who were convicted of a murder 40 years ago and placed in solitary confinement for 36 years. Her report showed evidence that suggested they were wrongfully convicted. Marc Rosenwasser, Michael Kavanagh, Taylor Krauss and Lisa Biagiotti of World Focus won the International Television Award for their reporting on the humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Sherry Jones of Washington Media Associates won the Domestic Television Award for her reporting on the adoption of torture as an official United States policy.
Carlos Javier Ortiz won the Domestic Photography Award for his series on gun violence and youth and Carol Guzy of The Washington Post won the International Photography Award for her photographs in Sierra Leone, where the death rate from childbirth is one in eight women. Guzy was also awarded the grand prize, honoring her work as the most outstanding from the pool of winners.
“I slept on bug infested mattresses and smelled the urine and death the staff faces everyday,” Guzy said. “I am humbled by the privilege bestowed on us to document these moments.”
The ceremony honored Jane Mayer, an investigative reporter for The New Yorker, for her nonfiction book, “The Dark Side,” which examined American policy post 9/11. Karl Jacoby was also honored for his book, “Shadows at Dawn,” a study of the American Indian massacres in U.S. history.
