ONA announces winners in the 2021 Online Journalism Awards

PublicSource, Grist, ProPublica and The New York Times awarded the General Excellence honors at the 2021 OJAs; Gina Chua received Impact Award

PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 15, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Inspiring journalism projects covering climate change, Himalaya’s ghost cats, political crisis in Hong Kong and the U.S. public health system were among the finalists and winners honored Oct. 15 in the 2021 Online Journalism Awards—the annual global showcase of digital innovation administered by the Online News Association (ONA).Winners were announced online and during a ceremony in Philadelphia, where ONA reconnected the journalism community at the association’s first in-person conference in two years. The Lenfest Institute for Journalism provided support to host the 2021 OJAs reception and ceremony.

Special guests included *Gina Chua*, Executive Editor of Reuters, who was honored as the inaugural recipient of the Impact Award for her dedication to innovation in visual storytelling and steadfast commitment to mentor journalists and address structural issues in the industry. Selected by the ONA Board of Directors, the Impact Award recognizes trailblazing individuals who have made a substantial impact on the industry, regardless of their tenure in journalism or involvement with ONA.

Five honors in the 2021 OJAs come with a total of $40,000 in prize money. *PublicSource*, *Grist*, *ProPublica* and *The New York Times* each received a $5,000 prize for the General Excellence in Online Journalism award, supported by SmartNews. The Topical Reporting: Climate Change award went to *Grist*, with a $5,000 prize courtesy of McKinsey Publishing.

The 2021 Knight Award for Public Service—with a $5,000 prize supported by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation—honored *THE CITY* for their project “Missing Them,” a local accountability project to track down and memorialize people who died due to Covid-19 in New York City.

The Gather Award in Engaged Journalism comes with $2,500 prizes for each of the two subcategories, thanks to the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communications. *El Tímpano *earned recognition in the Micro/Small Newsrooms subcategory for their community-powered coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic, and *Anchorage Daily News* in collaboration with *ProPublica* are the winners in the Overall Excellence subcategory for their project “Unheard,” bringing to light the stories of survivors of sexual violence in Alaska.

ONA expanded this year’s competition with two new awards: Topical Reporting: Pandemic Coverage and Excellence in Social Justice Reporting. Winners in these categories included *The Washington Post*, *USA Today*, *News & Observer* and *ProPublica*.

The 2021 OJAs also reimagined recognition for student work, with two subcategories in the revamped Student Journalism Award. *Brett Marsh* of the *University of California, Berkeley, Graduate School of Journalism* received the award in the Student Portfolio subcategory. Two winners were recognized for the Student Team Portfolio Award—the *Arizona State University Walter Cronkite School of Journalism* and the *Newhouse School at Syracuse University.*

As part of the 2021 awards showcase, ONA also previously announced the 2021 recipients of three awards bestowed by special committees on individuals or small groups. Honorees included the community managers of the *ICFJ Global Health Crisis Reporting Forum (Paul Adepoju, Kossi Balao, Desiree Esquivel, Fadwa Kamal, Alexandre Orrico, Stella Roque)* for the ONA Community Award; Palestinian freelance photojournalist *Samar Abu Elouf* for James Foley Award for Conflict Reporting; and *Meredith Artley*, Senior Vice President and Editor-in-Chief of CNN Digital Worldwide, for the Rich Jaroslovsky Founder Award.

Here is the full list of the 2021 Online Journalism Awards winners in 21 categories that were open for submissions:

*Gather Award in Engaged Journalism, Micro/Small Newsroom*
El Tímpano

*Gather Award in Engaged Journalism, Overall Excellence*
Anchorage Daily News, ProPublica

*Knight Award for Public Service*
THE CITY

*Excellence in Social Justice Reporting, Single Story*
News & Observer, ProPublica

*Excellence in Social Justice Reporting, Portfolio*
The Washington Post

*Topical Reporting: Climate Change*
Grist

*General Excellence in Online Journalism, Micro Newsroom*
PublicSource

*General Excellence in Online Journalism, Small Newsroom*
Grist

*General Excellence in Online Journalism, Medium Newsroom*
ProPublica

*General Excellence in Online Journalism, Large Newsroom*
The New York Times

*Breaking, Small/Medium Newsroom*
San Francisco Chronicle

*Breaking News, Large Newsroom*
The New York Times

*Digital Video Storytelling, Short Form*
FRONTLINE, The New Yorker

*Digital Video Storytelling, Medium Form*
Pulitzer Center, The New Yorker

*Digital Video Storytelling, Long Form*
Vice

*Digital Video Storytelling, Series*
South China Morning Post

*Excellence and Innovation in Visual Digital Storytelling, Small Newsroom*
À Punt Mèdia, Barret Cooperativa, Lab RTVE

*Excellence and Innovation in Visual Digital Storytelling, Medium Newsroom*
The New Yorker

*Excellence and Innovation in Visual Digital Storytelling, Large Newsroom*
The Globe and Mail

*Excellence in Audio Digital Storytelling, Limited Series*
The Washington Post

*Excellence in Audio Digital Storytelling, Ongoing Series*
Al Jazeera Digital, Al Jazeera English Online

*Excellence in Audio Digital Storytelling, Use of Audio Storytelling*
The Washington Post

*Excellence in Collaboration and Partnerships*
AL.com, IndyStar, Invisible Institute, The Baton Rouge Advocate, The Marshall Project

*Excellence in Immersive Storytelling*
The New Yorker

*Excellence in Newsletters, Portfolio*
The Wall Street Journal

*Excellence in Newsletters, Single Newsletter*
THE CITY

*Explanatory Reporting, Small Newsroom*
Center for Public Integrity

*Explanatory Reporting, Medium Newsroom*
Honolulu Star-Advertiser, ProPublica

*Explanatory Reporting, Large Newsroom*
Star Tribune

*Feature, Small Newsroom*
歪脑 | WHYNOT by Radio Free Asia

*Feature, Medium Newsroom*
Univision News Digital

*Feature, Large Newsroom*
The New York Times

*Online Commentary*
The Washington Post

*Sports, Small/Medium Newsroom*
MARCA

*Sports, Large Newsroom*
The New York Times

*Student Journalism Award, Student Portfolio*
Brett Marsh: University of California, Berkeley, Graduate School of Journalism

*Student Journalism Award, Student Team Portfolio*
Arizona State University Walter Cronkite School of Journalism, Carnegie-Knight News21

*Student Journalism Award, Student Team Portfolio*
Newhouse School at Syracuse University

*The Al Neuharth Innovation in Investigative Journalism Award, Small Newsroom*
Spotlight PA

*The Al Neuharth Innovation in Investigative Journalism Award, Medium Newsroom*
Tampa Bay Times

*The Al Neuharth Innovation in Investigative Journalism Award, Large Newsroom*
The Globe and Mail

*Topical Reporting: Pandemic Coverage, Portfolio*
The Washington Post

*Topical Reporting: Pandemic Coverage, Single Story*
USA Today

*University of Florida Award in Investigative Data Journalism, Small/Medium Newsroom*
Grist, The Texas Observer

*University of Florida Award in Investigative Data Journalism, Large Newsroom*
Associated Press, KHN (Kaiser Health News)

Launched in 2000, the Online Journalism Awards are the only comprehensive set of journalism prizes honoring excellence in digital journalism, focusing on independent, community, nonprofit, major media and international news sites. Find more highlights from the 2021 Online Journalism Awards using #OJA21 on social media and watch the ceremony at awards.journalists.org/live.

CONTACT: Contact: Karolle Rabarison, Director of Communications, karolle@journalists.org