Awards & Winners

2011 Pulitzer Prize

Check winners and nominations of 2011 Pulitzer Prize. Check awards winners of 2011 Pulitzer Prize. (Click on the Award name to show winners and nominees)

2011 Pulitzer Prize

Pulitzer Prize for Poetry

Kay Ryan

Honored for : The Best of It: New and Selected Poems

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Kay Ryan The Best of It: New and Selected Poems
Maurice Manning The Common Man
Jean Valentine Break the Glass
Pulitzer Prize for History

Eric Foner

Honored for : The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Eric Foner The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery
Stephanie McCurry Confederate Reckoning: Power and Politics in the Civil War South
Michael Rawson Eden on the Charles: The Making of Boston
Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction

Siddhartha Mukherjee

Honored for : The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer
(An elegant inquiry, at once clinical and personal, into the long history of an insidious disease that, despite treatment breakthroughs, still bedevils medical science.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Siddhartha Mukherjee The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer
An elegant inquiry, at once clinical and personal, into the long history of an insidious disease that, despite treatment breakthroughs, still bedevils medical science.
Nicholas G. Carr The Shallows
A thought provoking exploration of the Internet\u2019s physical and cultural consequences, rendering highly technical material intelligible to the general reader.
S. C. Gwynne Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History
A memorable examination of the longest and most brutal of all the wars between European settlers and a single Indian tribe.
Pulitzer Prize for Drama

Bruce Norris

Honored for : Clybourne Park

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Bruce Norris Clybourne Park
John Guare A Free Man of Color
Lisa D'Amour Detroit
Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography

Ron Chernow

Honored for : Washington: A Life

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Ron Chernow Washington: A Life
Alan Brinkley The Publisher: Henry Luce and His American Century
Michael O'Brien Mrs. Adams in Winter: A Journey in the Last Days of Napoleon
Pulitzer Prize for Music

Zhou Long

Honored for : Madame White Snake

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Zhou Long Madame White Snake
Fred Lerdahl Arches
Ricardo Zohn-Muldoon Comala
Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography

Carol Guzy, Nikki Kahn, Ricky Carioti

(For their up-close portrait of grief and desperation after a catastrophic earthquake struck Haiti.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Carol Guzy
For their up-close portrait of grief and desperation after a catastrophic earthquake struck Haiti.
Nikki Kahn
For their up-close portrait of grief and desperation after a catastrophic earthquake struck Haiti.
Ricky Carioti
For their up-close portrait of grief and desperation after a catastrophic earthquake struck Haiti.
Daniel Berehulak
For their compelling portrayal of the human will to survive as historic floods engulfed regions of Pakistan.
Paula Bronstein
For their compelling portrayal of the human will to survive as historic floods engulfed regions of Pakistan.
Carolyn Cole
For her often haunting images of a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, capturing the harsh reality of widespread devastation.
Pulitzer Prize for Commentary

David Leonhardt

(For his graceful penetration of America\u2019s complicated economic questions, from the federal budget deficit to health care reform.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
David Leonhardt
For his graceful penetration of America\u2019s complicated economic questions, from the federal budget deficit to health care reform.
Phillip Morris
For his blend of local storytelling and unpredictable opinions, enlarging the discussion of controversial issues that stir a big city.
Mary Schmich
For her versatile columns exploring life and the concerns of a metropolis with whimsy and poignancy.
Pulitzer Prize for Criticism

Sebastian Smee

(For his vivid and exuberant writing about art, often bringing great works to life with love and appreciation.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Sebastian Smee
For his vivid and exuberant writing about art, often bringing great works to life with love and appreciation.
Jonathan Gold
For his delightful, authoritative restaurant reviews, escorting readers through a city\u2019s diverse food culture.
Nicolai Ouroussoff
For his well honed architectural criticism, highlighted by ambitious essays on the burst of architectural projects in oil-rich Middle East countries.
Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning

Mike Keefe

(For his widely ranging cartoons that employ a loose, expressive style to send strong, witty messages.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Mike Keefe
For his widely ranging cartoons that employ a loose, expressive style to send strong, witty messages.
Matt Davies
For cartoons in The Journal News, Westchester County, N.Y., work notably original in concept and execution, offering sharp opinion without shrillness.
Joel Pett
For provocative cartoons that often tackle controversial Kentucky issues, marked by a simple style and a passion for humanity.
Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing

Joseph Rago

(For his well crafted, against-the-grain editorials challenging the health care reform advocated by President Obama.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Jackson Diehl
For his insightful editorials on foreign affairs, marked by prescient pieces critical of America\u2019s policy toward Egypt well before a revolution erupted there.
John P. McCormick
For his relentless campaign to reform an unsustainable public pension system that threatens the economic future of Illinois.
Joseph Rago
For his well crafted, against-the-grain editorials challenging the health care reform advocated by President Obama.
Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting

Mark Johnson, Kathleen Gallagher, Gary Porter, Lou Saldivar, Alison Sherwood

(For their lucid examination of an epic effort to use genetic technology to save a 4-year-old boy imperiled by a mysterious disease, told with words, graphics, videos and other images.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Mark Johnson
For their lucid examination of an epic effort to use genetic technology to save a 4-year-old boy imperiled by a mysterious disease, told with words, graphics, videos and other images.
Kathleen Gallagher
For their lucid examination of an epic effort to use genetic technology to save a 4-year-old boy imperiled by a mysterious disease, told with words, graphics, videos and other images.
Gary Porter
For their lucid examination of an epic effort to use genetic technology to save a 4-year-old boy imperiled by a mysterious disease, told with words, graphics, videos and other images.
Lou Saldivar
For their lucid examination of an epic effort to use genetic technology to save a 4-year-old boy imperiled by a mysterious disease, told with words, graphics, videos and other images.
Alison Sherwood
For their lucid examination of an epic effort to use genetic technology to save a 4-year-old boy imperiled by a mysterious disease, told with words, graphics, videos and other images.
The Wall Street Journal
For its penetration of the shadowy world of fraud and abuse in Medicare, probing previously concealed government databases to identify millions of dollars in waste and corrupt practices.
The Washington Post
For its exploration of how the military is using trauma surgery, brain science and other techniques both old and new to reduce fatalities among the wounded in warfare, telling the story with words, images and other tools.
Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography

Barbara Davidson

(For her intimate story of innocent victims trapped in the city\u2019s crossfire of deadly gang violence.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Barbara Davidson
For her intimate story of innocent victims trapped in the city\u2019s crossfire of deadly gang violence.
Todd Heisler
For his sensitive portrayal of a large Colombian clan carrying a genetic mutation that causes Alzheimer\u2019s disease in early middle age.
Greg Kahn
For his pictures that show the mixed impact of the recession in Florida \u2013 loss of jobs and homes for some but profit for others.
Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing

Amy Ellis Nutt

(For her deeply probing story of the mysterious sinking of a commercial fishing boat in the Atlantic Ocean that drowned six men.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Amy Ellis Nutt
For her deeply probing story of the mysterious sinking of a commercial fishing boat in the Atlantic Ocean that drowned six men.
Tony Bartelme
For his engaging account of a South Carolina neurosurgeon\u2019s quest to teach brain surgery in Tanzania, possibly providing a new model for health care in developing countries.
Michael M. Phillips
For his portfolio of deftly written stories that provide war-weary readers with fresh perspective on the conflict in Afghanistan.
Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting

Clifford J. Levy, Ellen Barry

(For their dogged reporting that put a human face on the faltering justice system in Russia, remarkably influencing the discussion inside the country.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Clifford J. Levy
For their dogged reporting that put a human face on the faltering justice system in Russia, remarkably influencing the discussion inside the country.
Ellen Barry
For their dogged reporting that put a human face on the faltering justice system in Russia, remarkably influencing the discussion inside the country.
Deborah Sontag
For her coverage of the earthquake in Haiti, steadfastly telling poignant, wide-ranging stories with a lyrical touch and an impressive eye for detail.
The Wall Street Journal
For its examination of the causes of Europe\u2019s debt crisis, taking readers behind closed doors to meet pivotal characters while illuminating the wider economic, political and social reverberations.
Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting

Paige St. John

(For her examination of weaknesses in the murky property-insurance system vital to Florida homeowners, providing handy data to assess insurer reliability and stirring regulatory action.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Paige St. John
For her examination of weaknesses in the murky property-insurance system vital to Florida homeowners, providing handy data to assess insurer reliability and stirring regulatory action.
Walt Bogdanich
For his spotlighting of medical radiation errors that injure thousands of Americans, sparking national discussion and remedial steps.
Sam Roe
For their investigation, in print and online, of 13 deaths at a home for severely disabled children and young adults, resulting in a state effort to close the facility.
Jared S. Hopkins
For their investigation, in print and online, of 13 deaths at a home for severely disabled children and young adults, resulting in a state effort to close the facility.
Walt Bogdanich
[New York Times] For his spotlighting of medical radiation errors that injure thousands of Americans, sparking national discussion and remedial steps.
Jared S. Hopkins
[Chicago Tribune] For their investigation, in print and online, of 13 deaths at a home for severely disabled children and young adults, resulting in closure of the facility.
Sam Roe
[Chicago Tribune] For their investigation, in print and online, of 13 deaths at a home for severely disabled children and young adults, resulting in closure of the facility.
Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting

Frank Main, Mark Konkol, John J. Kim

Honored for : Chicago Sun-Times
(For their immersive documentation of violence in Chicago neighborhoods, probing the lives of victims, criminals and detectives as a widespread code of silence impedes solutions.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Frank Main
For their immersive documentation of violence in Chicago neighborhoods, probing the lives of victims, criminals and detectives as a widespread code of silence impedes solutions.
Mark Konkol
For their immersive documentation of violence in Chicago neighborhoods, probing the lives of victims, criminals and detectives as a widespread code of silence impedes solutions.
John J. Kim
For their immersive documentation of violence in Chicago neighborhoods, probing the lives of victims, criminals and detectives as a widespread code of silence impedes solutions.
Marshall Allen
For their compelling reports on patients who suffered preventable injuries and other harm during hospital care, taking advantage of print and digital tools to drive home their findings.
Alex Richards
For their compelling reports on patients who suffered preventable injuries and other harm during hospital care, taking advantage of print and digital tools to drive home their findings.
Stanley Nelson
For his courageous and determined efforts to unravel a long forgotten Ku Klux Klan murder during the Civil Rights era.
Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting

Jesse Eisinger, Jake Bernstein

(For their exposure of questionable practices on Wall Street that contributed to the nation\u2019s economic meltdown, using digital tools to help explain the complex subject to lay readers.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Jake Bernstein
For their exposure of questionable practices on Wall Street that contributed to the nation\u2019s economic meltdown, using digital tools to help explain the complex subject to lay readers.
Jesse Eisinger
For their exposure of questionable practices on Wall Street that contributed to the nation\u2019s economic meltdown, using digital tools to help explain the complex subject to lay readers.
David Evans
For his revelations of how life insurance companies retained death benefits owed to families of military veterans and other Americans, leading to government investigations and remedial changes.
The Wall Street Journal
For its examination of the disastrous explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, using detailed reports to hold government and major corporations accountable.
Pulitzer Prize for Public Service

Los Angeles Times

(For its exposure of corruption in the small California city of Bell where officials tapped the treasury to pay themselves exorbitant salaries, resulting in arrests and reforms.)

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Los Angeles Times
For its exposure of corruption in the small California city of Bell where officials tapped the treasury to pay themselves exorbitant salaries, resulting in arrests and reforms.
Bloomberg News
For the work of Daniel Golden, John Hechinger and John Lauerman that revealed how some for-profit colleges exploit low-income students, leading to a federal crackdown on a multi-billion-dollar industry.
The New York Times
For the work of Alan Schwarz in illuminating the peril of concussions in football and other sports, spurring a national discussion and a re-examination of helmets and of medical and coaching practices.
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction

Jennifer Egan

Honored for : A Visit from the Goon Squad

Nominations »

Nominee Nominated Work
Jennifer Egan A Visit from the Goon Squad
Jonathan Dee The Privileges
Chang-Rae Lee The Surrendered