The Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism received seven awards in the Milwaukee Press Club’s annual Awards for Excellence in Wisconsin Journalism, which were announced today.
The awards recognize the Center’s investigations of state prison inmate abuse allegations and solitary confinement, water contamination in dairy country, frac sand mining, the use of college students as confidential informants in drug cases, and controversial experiments on monkeys at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Also honored: multimedia coverage with The Capital Times of Madison’s polluted lakes, and the design of the Center’s website, WisconsinWatch.org
The Center now has won 32 awards from the press club, receiving eight in 2014 and 2013, four in 2012 and five in 2011.
Five UW-Madison students, working as paid Center interns or paid freelance reporters, played important roles in the award-winning projects, which also involved all five of the Center’s five professional staff members and two volunteers. The awards were earned in competition with professional news organizations across Wisconsin.
The announcement of whether each award is gold, silver or bronze will come at the awards dinner on May 15. The press club’s Awards for Excellence in Wisconsin Journalism are the state’s premiere all-media journalism competition.
Details:
Best Multi-Story Coverage of a Single Feature Topic or Event
Kate Golden and Ron Seely
Kewaunee County’s water woes
Best Business Story or Series
Alison Dirr, Taylor Chase and Kate Golden
Frac-sand boom creates promise, problems for Wisconsin.
Stories here, here, here and here.
Best Investigative Story or Series
Bill Lueders, Kate Golden, Lauren Fuhrmann, Andy Hall and Dee J. Hall (Center volunteer)
Cruel and Unusual? Inmates allege abuse at Waupun Correctional Institution
Sean Kirkby
Confidential informants on college campuses
Best Public Service Story or Series
Noah Phillips and Bill Lueders
Controversial monkey experiment planned at UW-Madison
Best Use of Multimedia
Kate Golden and Wesley Brooks (volunteer), Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism; in collaboration with Todd Milewski and Brandon Raygo, The Capital Times
Murky Waters – Madison’s quest for clean lakes
Best Website Design
Kate Golden, Lauren Fuhrmann and Andy Hall
WisconsinWatch.org