2025 Dart Award Winners Announced

We are pleased to announce the winners of the 31st annual Dart Awards for Excellence in Coverage of Trauma: Al Jazeera Fault Lines and The Baltimore Banner. Honorable Mentions went to Bloomberg Businessweek and The Marshall Project.

The Dart Awards, now in their 31st year, recognize outstanding reporting in all media that portrays traumatic events and their aftermath with accuracy, insight and sensitivity while illuminating the effects of violence and tragedy on victims’ lives. By tradition, the Dart Award is a team prize, recognizing that in-depth coverage of trauma requires an exceptional commitment by the entire news organization.

"This year’s Dart Award honorees all take readers and viewers on deep and moving journeys through the complex lives of survivors of violence and trauma," said Bruce Shapiro, the Dart Center’s executive director. "At times harrowing, at times inspiring, this year’s honorees bring humanity, depth and nuance to some of today’s most consequential issues, rooted in rigorous, survivor-centered reporting which defies polarization or sloganeering."

Al Jazeera Fault Lines received the Dart Award for "All That Remains," which follows Leyan Abu al-Atta, a 13-year-old girl from Gaza who lost her leg in an Israeli airstrike, as she seeks medical treatment in the United States. (Team members: Rhana Natour, journalist and filmmaker; Laila Al-Arian, executive producer; Carissa Henderson, director of photography; Adrienne Haspel, editor; Mehr Sher, associate producer; Media Town, production services; Hasan Mashharawi, production manager; Ashraf Mashharawi, producer; Mohammed Ibaida, Gaza director of photography; Soliman Alfarra, Gaza director of photography; and Omer Zineldeen, Gaza field producer.)

Judges described the documentary as a “journalistically rigorous, beautifully told, sensitive portrayal of a child’s trauma and journey to recovery.” They praised the reporting team for “showing who Leyan was and who she is now,” and for letting film subjects “narrate their own journey living through war, Israeli airstrikes, family separation and an uncertain future.” They commended the filmmakers for “honoring Leyan’s hopes, dreams and defiant acts of resilience” and for showing viewers that “healing is not a linear process, grief is not uniform, and trauma is a tapestry that extends differently through different lives.” They also applauded the team for “reporting under exceedingly dangerous conditions,” and for featuring “moments of tenderness and joy” amidst “complete and utter destruction.”

The Baltimore Banner received the Dart Award for "Uncovering abuse at Greater Grace Church," which investigates allegations of child sexual abuse at Greater Grace World Outreach and the church’s handling of the accusations. (Jessica Calefati, education investigative reporter; Julie Scharper, enterprise reporter and Justin Fenton, investigative reporter.)

Judges described the series as “an outstanding feat of investigative reporting” that “unfolds with depth and discipline, supported by richly-reported character arcs and clearly annotated timelines” to show how survivors “uncovered the church’s web of lies and demanded accountability.” They praised the project’s “narrative and structural clarity in the face of deeply layered abuse, spiritual manipulation and institutional denial.” They commended the team for “focusing squarely on the survivors” and their “ongoing efforts to protect others,” and for “giving them space to describe their abuse, confusion, and recovery in their own terms,” “helping readers understand the deeply individual nature of coping.” They praised the photographs and illustrations for “bringing the reporting to life,” and applauded the Banner’s “dedication to helping the community of Baltimore – their own community – begin to heal.”