The Meyer “Mike” Berger Award
Congratulations to 2026 Winner John Hill of the Honolulu Civil-Beat!
2026 Mike Berger Award Winner
John Hill has won the 2026 Meyer “Mike” Berger Award for “When No One is Watching,” a four-part investigative series in the Honolulu Civil-Beat about what can happen in a foster home when no one is supervising the foster parents, and the consequences of abusive care years later when former foster boys age out of the system. Hill told the story of a foster dad who took in over 60 boys deemed “difficult to handle” over a twenty year period. He had been lauded by the child welfare system for being a miracle worker with such cases. A civil court case brought by one of the survivors alerted Hill to the systemic dysfunction ruining the lives of boys and young teens. Hill reached out to dozens of foster boys and their relatives, and obtained police reports and court records for the series.
The Meyer "Mike" Berger Award and its $1,500 prize is awarded for outstanding human interest reporting across platforms. All platforms are eligible for the award. All entries must have been published during 2025 in the U.S., though in the case of a series or ongoing story, work that appeared in January 2026 will be accepted. Journalists who report in a foreign language should submit copies of original stories with an English translation. No entry fee is required.
Members of the faculty of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism judge the entries for the Berger award. The award, which consists of a certificate from Columbia and a $1,500 prize, is conferred annually at the School’s Journalism Day ceremony in May.
Berger won a 1950 Pulitzer Prize for local reporting for his story on a veteran who went on a shooting spree in Camden, New Jersey, killing several residents. He then reintroduced the newspaper’s “About New York” column in the early 1950s, setting the standard for evocative and eloquent human-interest reporting. Berger passed away in 1959. Louis Schweitzer, a New York industrialist who admired Berger’s work, created the Berger Award in 1960.
2025
Cecilia Reyes, Business Insider, “Locked Out." Judges: Keith Gessen, Alisa Solomon, Margaret Sullivan
2024
Sally Jenkins, The Washington Post, "Bitter rivals. Beloved friends. Survivors." Judges: David Hajdu, Alisa Solomon and Alexander Stille
2023
Lynzy Billing, ProPublica, “The Night Raids." Judges: Joanne Faryon, Meg Kissinger and Dale Maharidge
2022
Evan Allen, Boston Globe, “Under the Wheel.” Judges: Joanne Faryon, David Hajdu and Dale Maharidge
2021
Joe Sexton, ProPublica, "He’d Waited Decades to Argue His Innocence” Judges: Joanne Faryon, Meg Kissinger and Dale Maharidge
2020
Thomas Curwen and Francine Orr, Los Angeles Times, "The Street Within", an immersive series that followed eight residents of a homeless encampment who were fast-tracked to apartments in South Los Angeles. Judges: Joanne Faryon, Meg Kissinger and Dale Maharidge
2019
Terrence McCoy, The Washington Post, A series on Americans who were challenged in deeply personal ways by some of the most significant political and social issues of the day including the opioid crisis and immigration: Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Judges: Joanne Faryon, Meg Kissinger and Dale Maharidge
2018
John Woodrow Cox, The Washington Post, A series on children affected by gun violence: Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Judges: David Hajdu, Meg Kissinger and Karen Stabiner
2017
Eli Saslow, The Washington Post, A series showcasing pockets of suffering in white America: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Judges: David Hajdu, Dale Maharidge and Paula Span
2016
Ken Armstrong and T. Christian Miller, The Marshall Project and ProPublica, “An Unbelievable Story of Rape.” Judges: David Hajdu, Dale Maharidge and Ruth Padawer
2015
Joanne Faryon and Brad Racino, inewsource, “An Impossible Choice: Deciding When a Life is No Longer Worth Living.” Judges: Andie Tucher, David Hajdu and Dale Maharidge
2014
Julia O’Malley, Anchorage Daily News, “The Things that Happen: Two Boys and Cancer.” Judges: Andie Tucher, David Hajdu and Jonathan Weiner
2013
Sheri Fink, Freelance, A series of pieces exploring the catastrophic consequences of bureaucratic, structural, and political failures during the deadly hurricane season of 2012. Judges: David Hajdu, Michael Shapiro and Andie Tucher
2012
John Branch, New York Times, “Punched Out: The Life and Death of a Hockey Enforcer.” Judges: Sheila Coronel, Andie Tucher and Dale Maharidge
2011
Anne Barnard, New York Times, “A Parish Tested.” Judges: Columbia Journalism School Faculty
2010
Joanna Connors, The Plain Dealer, "The Sheltering Sky.” Judges: Columbia Journalism School Faculty
2009
Brendan McCarthy, Times-Picayune, "Homicide 37." Judges: Columbia Journalism School Faculty
2008
Michael Paulson, The Boston Globe, "Ma Siss’s Place: The Birth of a Church." Judges: Columbia Journalism School Faculty
2007
Abigail Tucker, The Baltimore Sun, 2006 Reporting. Judges: Columbia Journalism School Faculty
2006
Andrea Gurwitt, Katie Thomas and Steve Wick from Newsday and the Herald News. Judges: Columbia Journalism School Faculty
See the archived list of winners since 1961.
Judges
The Berger Award is judged by Columbia Journalism School faculty.
Contact
212-854-6468
[email protected]
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