Since 1994, the Dart Awards for Excellence in Coverage of Trauma have recognized exemplary journalism on the impact of violence, crime and other traumatic events on individuals, families and communities. Spotlighting the experiences of victims and survivors, Dart Award winners make significant contributions to public understanding of trauma-related issues. Past winners include some of the world’s best-known news organizations as well as small community outlets.
The Dart Awards are open to newspaper, magazine, online, radio, television, video and multimedia journalism from North America that goes beyond the ordinary in reporting on trauma. Two $5,000 cash prizes are awarded each year.
2024 First Round Judges: Melissa Bailey, freelance journalist; Adriana Gallardo, engagement reporter, ProPublica and 2021 Dart Award Winner; Rachel de Leon, producer and reporter, Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting; Janelle Nanos, enterprise reporter, The Boston Globe and 2023 Dart Award Winner; Meg Martin, Knight-Wallace fellow, University of Michigan; Naseem Miller, senior health editor, Harvard Kennedy School’s Journalist's Resource; Francine Orr, staff photojournalist, Los Angeles Times and 2022 Dart Award Winner; Maya Rao, journalist, Minneapolis Star Tribune and 2021 Dart Award Winner; Jeremy Redmon, enterprise reporter, Atlanta Journal Constitution; Dave Seglins, investigative journalist, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation; Meg Shutzer, journalist/documentary filmmaker and 2023 Dart Award Honorable Mention; Andrea Simakis, Director of Media Relations, Oberlin College and Conservatory and 2020 Dart Award winner; Brandon Stahl, journalist and 2019 Dart Award Honorable Mention; Saidu Tejan Thomas Jr, former podcast host and 2021 Dart Award Winner; Almudena Toral, executive producer for video and film, ProPublica and 2021 Dart Award Honorable Mention; Hana Wuerker, documentary filmmaker and editor.
2024 Final Judges: Lisa Armstrong, journalist and Professor, Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism; Carlos Gonzalez, Staff Photographer, Minneapolis Star Tribune and 2021 Dart Award Honorable Mention; Sacha Pfeiffer, Correspondent, NPR’s Investigations Team; Raquel Rutledge, Investigations Editor, The Examination and 2023 Dart Award Winner; Soraya Seedat, President-Elect, International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies.
Read more about the 2024 Final Judging Committee here
Past judges include: Ana Arana, Director, Fundacion MEPI and 2013 Dart Award winner; John Barth, Managing Director, Public Radio Exchange (PRX); David Boardman, Dean, Temple University School of Media and Communication; Jessica Bruder, journalist and author; Jelani Cobb, Staff Writer, The New Yorker; Lori Grinker, Documentary Photographer; Kenny Irby, Senior Faculty, The Poynter Institute; Susan Meiselas, photographer, Magnum Photo Agency; Miranda Olff Ph.D., Professor, AMC/University of Amsterdam and past president, International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS); Sacha Pfeiffer, Investigative Reporter, The Boston Globe; Glenn Smith, Projects Editor, The Post and Courier and 2015 Dart Award winner; Sarah Stillman, Staff Writer, The New Yorker; and Alisa Solomon, Professor, Columbia Journalism School; Ginger Thompson, chief of correspondents, ProPublica; Raghuram Vadarevu, digital storytelling editor for global investigations, Associated Press.
This powerful, nuanced and sensitive piece offers a rare look into one case taken up by a little-known group of mitigation specialists, who have been working for three decades to save the lives of death-penalty defendants by documenting their childhood traumas.
This gripping, beautifully written and deeply-reported investigation tells the story of the 1989 murder of Carol Stuart, and the people caught up in it who never managed to get free.
Since 1994, the Dart Awards for Excellence in Coverage of Trauma have recognized exemplary reporting on the impact of trauma on individuals, families and communities. Below please find a complete list of our honorees.
A young mother rents a house in West Allis. The previous tenant tells her, "Baby, they shouldn't have let you move in."
This haunting and illuminating piece bravely side-steps the expected narrative, telling the story of Kristen Kinkel as she reckons with the crimes committed by her brother Kip. Twenty-five years ago, he killed their parents and opened fire at their high school.
This brilliant, enraging five-part series exposes the astonishing resurgence of child labor in the United States, and reveals the profound failures that have led to this shadow workforce.
Since 1994, the Dart Awards for Excellence in Coverage of Trauma have recognized exemplary reporting on the impact of trauma on individuals, families and communities. Below please find a complete list of our honorees.
Repeated abuses, overlooked complaints and a surge in suicide attempts at a detention center with powerful allies.
Entry guidelines are now available for the 2025 Dart Awards for Excellence in Coverage of Trauma. We will be accepting submissions until January 28, 2025 at 5:00 pm EST.
The 2024 Dart Awards went to The Boston Globe for "Nightmare in Mission Hill: The Untold Story of the Charles and Carol Stuart Shooting" and to The Marshall Project for "The Mercy Workers." Honorable Mentions went to The New Yorker and The New York Times.
Since 1994, the Dart Awards for Excellence in Coverage of Trauma have recognized exemplary journalism on the impact of violence, crime and other traumatic events on individuals, families and communities. Spotlighting the experiences of victims and survivors, Dart Award honorees make significant contributions to public understanding of trauma-related issues. The 2024 Dart Award finalists include some of the world’s best-known news organizations as well as small community outlets.