Awards & Winners

Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting

Pulitzer Prize

Date Established : 1998

Check all the winners of Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting presented under Pulitzer Prize since 1998 .


Eli Saslow

Honored for : The Washington Post
(For his unsettling and nuanced reporting on the prevalence of food stamps in post-recession America, forcing readers to grapple with issues of poverty and dependency.)

Nominations 2014 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Eli Saslow
For his unsettling and nuanced reporting on the prevalence of food stamps in post-recession America, forcing readers to grapple with issues of poverty and dependency.
Dennis Overbye
For his authoritative illumination of the race by two competing teams of 3,000 scientists and technicians over a seven-year period to discover what physicists call the \u201CGod particle\u201D.
Les Zaitz
For chilling narratives that, at personal risk to him and his sources, revealed how lethal Mexican drug cartels infiltrated Oregon and other regions of the country.

Charles Duhigg, John Markoff, David Segal, David Streitfeld, David Barboza, David Kocieniewski, Steve Lohr, Hiroko Tabuchi, Bill Vlasic

Honored for : The New York Times
(For its penetrating look into business practices by Apple and other technology companies that illustrates the darker side of a changing global economy for workers and consumers)

Nominations 2013 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Dan Egan
Dan Egan of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for his exhaustive examination of the struggle to keep Asian carp and other invasive species from reaching the Great Lakes and ultimately all of the nation\u2019s inland waters, a story enhanced by animated graphics.
Tony Bartelme
Tony Bartelme of The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C., for his stories that helped readers understand the complex factors driving up their insurance bills.
The New York Times
For its penetrating look into business practices by Apple and other technology companies that illustrates the darker side of a changing global economy for workers and consumers.

David Kocieniewski

(For his lucid series that penetrated a legal thicket to explain how the nation\u2019s wealthiest citizens and corporations often exploited loopholes and avoided taxes.)

Nominations 2012 »

Nominee Nominated Work
David Kocieniewski
For his lucid series that penetrated a legal thicket to explain how the nation\u2019s wealthiest citizens and corporations often exploited loopholes and avoided taxes.
Tom Frank USA Today
For his sharply focused exploration of inflated pensions for state and local employees, enhancing stories with graphic material to show how state legislators pump up retirement benefits in creative but unconscionable ways.
The Wall Street Journal
For its tenacious exploration of how personal information is harvested from the cellphones and computers of unsuspecting Americans by corporations and public officials in a largely unmonitored realm of modern life.

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 2011 »

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.

Michael Moss

Honored for : The New York Times
(For relentless reporting on contaminated hamburger and other food safety issues that, in print and online, spotlighted defects in federal regulation and led to improved practices.)

Nominations 2010 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Dan Egan
For his path-breaking coverage of how invasive aquatic creatures have disrupted the ecosystem of the Great Lakes and other bodies of water, illuminating the science and politics of an important national issue.
Kirsten Grind
For their meticulous examination of the collapse of Washington Mutual, the biggest bank failure in U.S. history, plumbing causes and raising troubling questions about federal regulation.
Jeanne Lang Jones
For their meticulous examination of the collapse of Washington Mutual, the biggest bank failure in U.S. history, plumbing causes and raising troubling questions about federal regulation.
Alwyn Scott
For their meticulous examination of the collapse of Washington Mutual, the biggest bank failure in U.S. history, plumbing causes and raising troubling questions about federal regulation.
Michael Moss The New York Times
For relentless reporting on contaminated hamburger and other food safety issues that, in print and online, spotlighted defects in federal regulation and led to improved practices.
Gina Kolata The New York Times
For their exploration of the lack of progress in the 40-year war on cancer, combining explanation of scientific complexity and the exposure of myths with an empathetic portrayal of the human suffering caused by the disease.

Julie Cart, Bettina Boxall

(For their fresh and painstaking exploration into the cost and effectiveness of attempts to combat the growing menace of wildfires across the western United States.)

Nominations 2009 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Adam Liptak
For his lucid exposition of how the cornerstones of the American judicial system differ from those in other democratic nations, awakening readers to the benefits and drawbacks of those differences.
Robert O'Harrow, Jr.
For their vivid, richly documented explanation of why AIG, the insurance industry giant, nearly collapsed and what lessons the crisis holds for the nation\u2019s policymakers.
Brady Dennis
For their vivid, richly documented explanation of why AIG, the insurance industry giant, nearly collapsed and what lessons the crisis holds for the nation\u2019s policymakers.
Bettina Boxall
For their fresh and painstaking exploration into the cost and effectiveness of attempts to combat the growing menace of wildfires across the western United States.
Julie Cart
For their fresh and painstaking exploration into the cost and effectiveness of attempts to combat the growing menace of wildfires across the western United States.

Amy Harmon

(For her striking examination of the dilemmas and ethical issues that accompany DNA testing, using human stories to sharpen her reports.)

Nominations 2008 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Amy Harmon
For her striking examination of the dilemmas and ethical issues that accompany DNA testing, using human stories to sharpen her reports.
Beth Daley
For her evocative exploration of how global warming affects New Englanders, from ice fishermen to blueberry farmers.

Kenneth R. Weiss, Rick Loomis, Usha Lee McFarling

(For their richly portrayed reports on the world's distressed oceans, telling the story in print and online, and stirring reaction among readers and officials.)

Nominations 2007 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Kenneth R. Weiss
For their richly portrayed reports on the world's distressed oceans, telling the story in print and online, and stirring reaction among readers and officials.
Rick Loomis
For their richly portrayed reports on the world's distressed oceans, telling the story in print and online, and stirring reaction among readers and officials.
Usha Lee McFarling
For their richly portrayed reports on the world's distressed oceans, telling the story in print and online, and stirring reaction among readers and officials.
Joanne Kimberlin
For their provocative examination of the United States' increasing reliance on private military personnel.
Bill Sizemore
For their provocative examination of the United States' increasing reliance on private military personnel.
The New York Times
For its multi-faceted explanation of the growing menace of diabetes, especially among the poor and vulnerable, that elicited a range of public and private responses.

David Finkel

(For his ambitious, clear-eyed case study of the United States government\u2019s attempt to bring democracy to Yemen.)

Nominations 2006 »

Nominee Nominated Work
David Finkel
For his ambitious, clear-eyed case study of the United States government's attempt to bring democracy to Yemen.
Debbie Cenziper
For her deeply researched examination of breakdowns in hurricane forecasting that often endanger lives.
Mark Johnson
For their riveting chronicle of a teenage girl's miraculous recovery from a rabies infection that medicine had previously considered fatal.
Kawanza Newson
For their riveting chronicle of a teenage girl's miraculous recovery from a rabies infection that medicine had previously considered fatal.

Gareth Cook

(For explaining, with clarity and humanity, the complex scientific and ethical dimensions of stem cell research.)

Nominations 2005 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Gareth Cook
For explaining, with clarity and humanity, the complex scientific and ethical dimensions of stem cell research.
William Broad
For their aggressive reporting and lucid writing that cast light on the shadowy process of nuclear proliferation.
David E. Sanger
For their aggressive reporting and lucid writing that cast light on the shadowy process of nuclear proliferation.
Newsday
For its serious, energetic and substantive series examining three decades of hip-hop music in American life.

Kevin Helliker, Thomas M. Burton

(For their groundbreaking examination of aneurysms, an often overlooked medical condition that kills thousands of Americans each year.)

Nominations 2004 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Kevin Helliker
For their groundbreaking examination of aneurysms, an often overlooked medical condition that kills thousands of Americans each year.
Thomas M. Burton
For their groundbreaking examination of aneurysms, an often overlooked medical condition that kills thousands of Americans each year.
Erika Niedowski
For her illuminating account of how one of America's best hospitals let an infant die of a preventable condition and how the devastated mother joined with the hospital to spare other families such heartache.
Bernard Wolfson
For their ambitious exploration of the quality of care at 26 local hospitals and the creation of a \"report card\" to help consumers make medical decisions.
William Heisel
For their ambitious exploration of the quality of care at 26 local hospitals and the creation of a \"report card\" to help consumers make medical decisions.
Chris Knap
For their ambitious exploration of the quality of care at 26 local hospitals and the creation of a \"report card\" to help consumers make medical decisions.

Daniel Hertzberg, Geeta Anand, David Wessel, Mike Miller

Honored for : The Wall Street Journal
(For its clear, concise and comprehensive stories that illuminated the roots, significance and impact of corporate scandals in America. (Moved by the jury from the Public Service category.))

Nominations 2003 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Daniel Hertzberg The Wall Street Journal
For its clear, concise and comprehensive stories that illuminated the roots, significance and impact of corporate scandals in America. (Moved by the jury from the Public Service category.)
Geeta Anand The Wall Street Journal
For its clear, concise and comprehensive stories that illuminated the roots, significance and impact of corporate scandals in America. (Moved by the jury from the Public Service category.)
David Wessel The Wall Street Journal
For its clear, concise and comprehensive stories that illuminated the roots, significance and impact of corporate scandals in America. (Moved by the jury from the Public Service category.)
Mike Miller The Wall Street Journal
For its clear, concise and comprehensive stories that illuminated the roots, significance and impact of corporate scandals in America. (Moved by the jury from the Public Service category.)
Jim Haner
For \"Justice Undone,\" their in-depth examination of the city's disturbingly low conviction rate in murder cases.
John B. O'Donnell
For \"Justice Undone,\" their in-depth examination of the city's disturbingly low conviction rate in murder cases.
Kimberly A.C. Wilson
For \"Justice Undone,\" their in-depth examination of the city's disturbingly low conviction rate in murder cases.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
For its painstaking explanation of chronic-wasting disease among deer in Wisconsin, and the impact of the affliction on the state's citizens, communities and culture.

The New York Times

(For its informed and detailed reporting, before and after the September 11th attacks on America, that profiled the global terrorism network and the threats it posed.)

Nominations 2002 »

Nominee Nominated Work
David Finkel
For his illuminating series of articles on the lives and journeys of international migrants.
The New York Times
For its informed and detailed reporting, before and after the September 11th attacks on America, that profiled the global terrorism network and the threats it posed.
The New York Times
For its sustained explanatory reporting on the nature of the structural damage at \"Ground Zero,\" the lower Manhattan area where the World Trade Center towers collapsed.

Chicago Tribune

(For 'Gateway to Gridlock,' its clear and compelling profile of the chaotic American air traffic system.)

Nominations 2001 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Louise Kiernan Chicago Tribune
For her moving and humane portrait of a young mother killed by a falling skyscraper window, its effect on her three-year-old daughter, and the negligence of the company involved.
The New York Times
For its insightful coverage of the completed deciphering of the human genome, which explained the scientific context for understanding the chemical string that makes up DNA, as well as the discovery's implications for the future.
Chicago Tribune
For \"Gateway to Gridlock,\" its clear and compelling profile of the chaotic American air traffic system.

Eric Newhouse

(For his vivid examination of alcohol abuse and the problems it creates in the community.)

Nominations 2000 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Eric Newhouse
For his vivid examination of alcohol abuse and the problems it creates in the community.
Brent Walth
For their series on how politics influences pesticide regulation.
Alex Pulaski
For their series on how politics influences pesticide regulation.
Michael Winerip
For his profile of a mentally ill man who pushed a woman to her death before an onrushing subway train, a case used by the writer for a broad overview of deficiencies in the mental health care system.

Richard Read

(For vividly illustrating the domestic impact of the Asian economic crisis by profiling the local industry that exports frozen french fries.)

Nominations 1999 »

Nominee Nominated Work
Richard Read
For vividly illustrating the domestic impact of the Asian economic crisis by profiling the local industry that exports frozen french fries.
Tom Brune
For his revealing analysis of the Washington state initiative on affirmative action that challenged accepted notions about practices that had been in place for three decades.
William Carlsen
For their compelling series chronicling the epidemic of health risks associated with the reckless use of unsafe hypodermic needles.
Reynolds Holding
For their compelling series chronicling the epidemic of health risks associated with the reckless use of unsafe hypodermic needles.

Paul Salopek

(For his enlightening profile of the Human Genome Diversity Project, which seeks to chart the genetic relationship among all people.)

Nominations 1998 »

Nominee Nominated Work
David Barstow
For his narrative portrait of the legal struggle against the tobacco industry, centered on the personalities who were key in reaching a tentative settlement of billions of dollars.
Linda Greenhouse
For her consistently illuminating coverage of the United States Supreme Court.
Paul Salopek
For his enlightening profile of the Human Genome Diversity Project, which seeks to chart the genetic relationship among all people.