Announcement from editorial page editor David Shipley, International editor Douglas Jehl and deputy International editor Jennifer Amur:
We are thrilled to announce that “The Amazon, Undone,” the investigation led by Terrence McCoy into the destruction of the world’s largest rainforest, has won a Gerald Loeb award for international reporting. This is the latest among a series of accolades for the remarkable project, which also won a George Polk award, an Overseas Press Club award and was a Pulitzer finalist for explanatory reporting.
The prize was awarded to Terry, our Rio De Janeiro bureau chief, who worked with colleagues across the newsroom to produce an extraordinary body of revelatory reporting and a stunning visual feast. The groundbreaking series illuminated the destruction of the Amazon in all its complexity and violence, putting a spotlight on the violent criminals behind the destruction, the authorities who allow them to operate with impunity, the role of the United States and the implications for the planet. Among those who shared bylines on the stories were Rafael Vilela, Raphael Alves and Alexandre Cruz-Noronha, for photos and video; Júlia Ledur, John Muyskens and Simon Ducroquet, for graphics; and Cecilia deLago, for data reporting. Gabriela Sá Pessoa contributed invaluable reporting and translation.
In all, Terry and those who worked with him spent more than a year on the project. Matthew Hay Brown was the principal editor; other key editors and contributors included Chloe Coleman, for photo editing; Alexa Juliana Ard and Avener Prado, for video; Alison Mann, Joe Moore and Matt Callahan, for design and development; Kate Rabinowitz, Laris Karklis, Lauren Tierney and Monica Ulmanu, for graphics; Julie Vitkovskaya and Jay Wang, for project management; Meghan Hoyer and Reinaldo Chaves, for data editing and analysis; Vanessa Larson and Martha Murdock, for copy editing.
We are equally thrilled to announce that Alyssa Rosenberg’s series of columns on the infant formula shortage was awarded a Gerald Loeb award for commentary. In the words of the judges, Alyssa’s work “spotlighted the structural causes of this national emergency and offered compelling solutions and advice for parents, corporations and politicians.” The committee pointed out the ways in which the columns successfully blended deep reporting and analysis with Alyssa’s personal experience – showing, for instance, the real (and steep) cost of breastfeeding. As important, the panel members noted how the work “had true impact,” with suggestions from the columns informing the FDA’s plan to repair the market. It takes a village to produce a series like this, so special recognition should go to Jen Balderama, Alyssa’s editor, and Yan Wu and Sergio Pecanha, both of whom provided superb graphic and design work.
