ProPublica aims to expose abuses of power and betrayals of the public trust by government, business and other institutions, using the moral force of investigative journalism to spur reform. ProPublica has harnessed the power of digital media to elevate local journalism to new heights and forge frontiers in investigative storytelling and audience engagement.
We wanted audiences to see findings unfold before their eyes, from a short documentary on dangerous CPAP machines, to an explanatory graphic illuminating a rift over a children’s health regulation, to satellite and records analysis that revealed for the first time how a majority of the water consumed by farms in California’s Imperial Valley goes to members of just 20 extended families.
With the Idaho Statesman, we used audiovisual evidence from hundreds of educators, parents and students to allow readers to experience life in the state’s ill-funded, crumbling schools.
With The Texas Tribune and FRONTLINE, we parsed through a massive trove of unreleased records related to the school shooting in Uvalde, including hundreds of hours of video interviews that officers gave investigators in the weeks after the attack, to allow the public to hear the candid descriptions of what the responders saw and why they didn’t act, against a backdrop of hallway and body-camera footage, 911 calls and descriptions of the day from children and teachers.
Only a photo essay could truly capture what happens in states that ban abortion but provide scant resources to impacted families. Mayron and Chris Hollis trusted our journalists enough to allow them to embed for a year as the couple struggled mentally, physically, financially and legally after a denied abortion. Along with the searing and intimate images, our designers created step-back moments to provide context and accountability on the government decisions and systems impacting the family.
We enlist readers to participate in reporting, building an app to help them obtain files insurers keep on their health care denials, including notes, emails and recordings of phone calls. We made major updates in two marquee news apps, adding over a million new Form 990s to Nonprofit Explorer and enhancing the features of Nursing Home Inspect; we then showed readers how to get the most out of it in a live, online event.
We want our findings to reach people every possible way. Our investigation of Leonard Leo, a key figure in the conservative takeover of America’s courts, was told as a podcast, a long-form feature and a thread. We harnessed capacity of social media to engage communities, helping users honor babies who died during birth as part of our stillbirth memorial project. We are including the series page for “With Every Breath” to demonstrate how we tie together projects and emphasize their impact.
Industry recognition of our work includes a Polk award for our CPAP coverage, a National Magazine Award for our work on Uvalde and various honors for visuals. Our work on the Supreme Court, which bridges two OJA contest years, won the Pulitzer Prize, Selden Ring and Polk among other awards.
The judges commended ProPublica’s work as exemplary journalism, highlighting its impact, engagement, and accessibility, with the Claim File project particularly standing out.
