NEW YORK—Columbia University announced today the winners of the 2005 duPont-Columbia University Awards for broadcast journalism. Five of the thirteen winners powerfully portray world events and their relation to the United States in ways that resonate deeply with American viewers. Several news organizations won for reports that enrich understanding of historical events, still others for programs that question government authorities on issues of homeland security and racial profiling.

 

This year's pool of 588 entries was also significant for its particularly strong submissions from local television stations, jurors said.

 

In all, thirteen silver batons for excellence in television and radio journalism will be awarded to local stations, networks, radio, cable and independently produced programs that aired in the United States between July 1, 2003, and June 30, 2004. The awards ceremony will be held January 13 at Columbia University. Co-hosts of the ceremony will be Gwen Ifill, senior correspondent for The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer on PBS, and Lesley Stahl, co-editor of the CBS News program 60 Minutes. Joining them in presenting the silver batons will be Columbia University President Lee C. Bollinger and Journalism School Dean Nicholas Lemann. A one-hour documentary about the winners, hosted by George Stephanopoulos, Without Fear or Favor: The Best in Broadcast Journalism, will be broadcast nationwide on PBS stations beginning Monday, January 24.

 

“Broadcast news organizations often take the position that audiences are not interested in international stories, yet never has an understanding of what happens overseas mattered so much to Americans,” said David A. Klatell, duPont jury chairman, and vice dean of the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism. “Five of the 13 winners are compelling reports about international issues that use the power of television and radio to draw audiences right into the stories.”

 

Of the five, only one pertains to Iraq. Jurors noted that Frontline’s Truth, War and Consequences stands alone in questioning the basic premises of the war at an earlier date and more thoroughly than any other entry. Other winners with international topics focused on Liberia, Rwanda, South Africa and Colombia. Among them, Frontline’s Ghosts of Rwanda, National Geographic Ultimate Explorer's Liberia: American Dream? and HBO’s The Kidnapping of Ingrid Betancourt represent the very best use of television to attract public attention to important issues, said jurors.

 

Two winning entries by major networks reflect journalists’ important role as government watchdogs. Jurors identified ABC News Primetime’s Nu NN clear Smuggling Project as exemplary investigative reporting that revealed continuing weaknesses in homeland security. NBC News’ Dateline, another winner, uncovered racial profiling by police in A Pattern of Suspicion with thorough, thoughtful and measured reporting.

 

Other winners highlight the importance of understanding history, placing events in context to demonstrate their broader significance. Hoxie: The First Stand, which aired on PBS, revisits the struggle of a small Arkansas town to desegregate its schools voluntarily following the Brown vs. Board of Education decision by the Supreme Court. ABC News’ Jesus and Paul: the Word and the Witness, aired during the release of Mel Gibson’s controversial movie The Passion, debates issues raised in that film and challenges long-held assumptions in a clear and accessible manner.

 

“Protecting the freedom of the press and advancing the principles of journalism is a responsibility that forms the heart of Columbia’s steadfast commitment to honoring this year’s duPont winners,” said Columbia University President Lee C. Bollinger. “I am proud to acknowledge these exceptional media organizations. Their work demonstrates why freedom of the press is integral to democracy and through their groundbreaking journalism, they call on us to reflect on our interdependence with the rest of the world.”

 

Selected from 588 submissions, the award winners are:

-- ABC NEWS and PJ PRODUCTIONS for Jesus and Paul: The Word and the Witness

-- ABC NEWS and PRIMETIME THURSDAY for the Nuclear Smuggling Project

-- DAVID APPLEBY and THE UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS for Hoxie: The First Stand on PBS

-- FRONTLINE and WGBH-TV for Ghosts of Rwanda on PBS

-- FRONTLINE and WGBH-TV for Truth, War and Consequences on PBS

-- HBO/CINEMAX REEL LIFE, VICTORIA BRUCE and KARIN HAYES for

      The Kidnapping of Ingrid Betancourt

-- LOUISIANA PUBLIC BROADCASTING for Louisiana: Currents of Change

-- MSNBC and NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ULTIMATE EXPLORER for

      Liberia: American Dream?

-- NBC NEWS and DATELINE for A Pattern of Suspicion

-- NPR and RADIO DIARIES for Mandela: An Audio History

-- WBAP-AM, DALLAS for JFK 40

-- WCNC-TV, CHARLOTTE for Medicaid Dental Centers Investigation

-- WFAA-TV, DALLAS for State of Denial

 

Documentary to air on PBS stations beginning January 24

Without Fear or Favor: The Best in Broadcast Journalism, hosted by George Stephanopoulos, will be broadcast nationwide on PBS stations beginning January 24. Award-winning filmmaker David Grubin, is producer and director of the one-hour documentary. Grubin and Columbia Journalism Dean Nicholas Lemann will collaborate as writers. Philip S. Balboni, president of New England Cable News and a former duPont juror, is executive producer. Stephen Segaller is executive in charge for Thirteen/WNET. In the New York area, Without Fear or Favor will air on Thirteen/WNET, on Monday, January 24 at 10:00 p.m. (Check local listings elsewhere.)

 

 

Excerpts from jurors’ comments follow:

 

ABC NEWS and PJ PRODUCTIONS for Jesus and Paul: The Word and the Witness

A three-hour primetime documentary about the origins of Christianity

 

An unusual subject for a news team to undertake, this documentary is a sweeping examination of the roots of Christianity told through the stories of Jesus and the Apostle Paul. The program takes viewers on an educational journey to the current-day Mediterranean settings where centuries ago a small Jewish sect took hold and ultimately displaced the Roman gods. It is an extraordinarily beautiful production with an exemplary balance of visual beauty, archival sources, editing, music and narrative power. 

 

Peter Jennings, correspondent and writer; Jeanmarie Condon, senior producer and writer; Ralph Avellino, producer and editor; Ben McCoy, director of photography; Steven Lederer, sound; Jenna Millman, associate producer; Tom Yellin, executive producer.

 

 

ABC NEWS and PRIMETIME THURSDAY for the Nuclear Smuggling Project

An investigative test of port security by shipping uranium into the United States

 

Aired on the anniversary of 9/11, this report by Brian Ross and his investigative team exposes the weaknesses of new Homeland Security measures by shipping depleted uranium from Jakarta to Los Angeles. Using a commercial shipper, legal materials and the advice of experts, the ABC News team packed a canister of harmless radioactive uranium into a cargo container full of teak furniture and souvenirs. As they had done a year earlier with a shipment from Istanbul to New York, the team followed the container past several security checkpoints that failed to detect the uranium or give the container even a cursory review. This time the U.S. government retaliated by opening a criminal investigation of the news team and its experts. This report exposes not only continued gaps in port security but also suggests there are weaknesses in government systems to deal effectively with such matters.

 

Brian Ross, chief investigative correspondent and writer; Rhonda Schwartz, senior investigative producer; David Scott, Vic Walter, producers; Jeff Freeman, John DeTarsio, camera; Becky Freeman, Dustin Eddo, sound; David Doss, executive producer.

 

 

DAVID APPLEBY and THE UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS for Hoxie: The First Stand on PBS

A documentary about Hoxie, Arkansas’ early effort to integrate its schools

 

This hour-long historical program illuminates our understanding of school desegregation in the late 1950s through the heroic story of a small Arkansas town. The all-white Hoxie school board set out to integrate its schools immediately after the 1955 Supreme Court decision in Brown vs. Board of Education, while most of the South was determined to defy the ruling. Filmmaker David Appleby interviews the surviving participants about the community’s painful struggle. The program’s style is deceptively simple, smoothly combining archival elements, re-enactments and interviews for a deeper understanding of a story that remains central to our national core.

 

David Appleby, producer, director and writer; Julian Bond, narrator; Allison Graham, associate producer; Sean Bloemer, videographer.

 

 

FRONTLINE and WGBH-TV for Ghosts of Rwanda on PBS

A two-hour documentary examining the international ramifications of genocide in Rwanda

 

In collaboration with the BBC and Silverbridge Productions, Frontline dissected the international humanitarian and political crisis that developed during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. The program builds on groundbreaking, first-hand accounts from those who lived through it and from others who represented the political powers involved: the U.N. peacekeepers, the U.S. and European leaders. The strength of this program rests on context, the detailed examination of the many players who failed to intervene in time to prevent the murder of 800,000 Rwandans. The program takes the under-reported story of Rwanda to a higher level as every top official breaks down in the face of immoral actions.

 

Greg Barker, producer, writer and director; Julia Powell, co-producer; Paul Carlin, editor; Vivienne Steele, production manager; Steven Dagdigian, assistant producer; Claudia Rizzi, field producer; Frank Lehmann, Ray Brislin, Fred Scott, photographers; Samantha Power, Will Ferroggiaro, consultants; Will Lyman, narrator; Michael Sullivan, executive producer, special projects; Louis Wiley Jr., executive editor; David Fanning, executive producer.

 

 

FRONTLINE and WGBH-TV for Truth, War and Consequences on PBS
A 90-minute report on the planning and execution of the war in Iraq

This meticulous effort to piece together the story of America’s planning and execution of the war in Iraq is the kind of exacting, nuanced, contextual work that few news outlets will undertake anymore. Aired in October 2003, barely seven months after the invasion, this documentary peels back the layers of internal conflicts among the State Department, the Pentagon, allies and Iraqi exiles, including a revealing interview with Ahmad Chalabi. Careful research linked to precise file footage and probing interviews create a new understanding of the ongoing story of Iraq. 

 

Martin Smith and Marcela Gaviria, producers; Ben Gold, editor and co-producer; Scott Anger, photographer and field producer; Christopher Durrance, co-producer; Will Lyman, narrator; Michael Sullivan, executive producer, special projects; Louis Wiley Jr., executive editor; David Fanning, executive producer.

 

 

HBO/CINEMAX REEL LIFE, VICTORIA BRUCE and KARIN HAYES for The Kidnapping of Ingrid Betancourt

A poignant documentary about a young presidential candidate in Colombia campaigning against violence and corruption

 

This program by two bold independent producers is highly original in its form and provides an extraordinary portrait of a nation torn by civil strife. The central figure is Ingrid Betancourt, an idealistic candidate for president of Colombia who creates her own political party, the Oxygen Green Party, to root out corruption in government and to end violence and kidnappings by drug lords and guerrillas. Although Betancourt was kidnapped by the guerillas in 2002 before the producers began filming in Colombia, they weave a heartbreaking tale of her family’s struggle to continue her presidential campaign while they wait for news of her fate. 

 

Victoria Bruce, Karin Hayes, producers and directors; Geof Bartz, editor; Cesar Pinzón, photographer; Mauricio Mesa, Humberto Pinzón, sound; Mayra Rodriguez, associate producer; for HBO/Cinemax, Sara Bernstein, associate producer; Lisa Heller, supervising producer; Sheila Nevins, executive producer.

 

 

LOUISIANA PUBLIC BROADCASTING for Louisiana: Currents of Change

A one-hour documentary about Louisiana history and its central character, the Mississippi River

 

Building on the catastrophic flood of 1927, this historical program brings to light rare archival material of Louisiana state history and the central role of the Mississippi River in all aspects of life. It focuses on the diversity of races that make up the state’s population and how those differences distinguish Louisiana’s development from that of other southern states. 

 

Tika Laudun, senior producer and director; Al Godoy, Christina Melton, producers; Charles Richard, writer; Lynn Whitfield, narrator; Stephen E. Ambrose, host; Clay Fourier and Beth Courtney, executive producers.

 

 

MSNBC and NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ULTIMATE EXPLORER for

Liberia: American Dream?

A two-hour eyewitness report on civil war in Liberia and the overthrow of President Charles Taylor

 

In covering a violent breaking news story in Liberia, National Geographic’s team showed both courage and insight. Before and after the team was evacuated in a U.S. helicopter, they documented stories of massacres, divided families, armed rebel gangs and a humanitarian crisis that spilled over into Sierra Leone. The program provides meaningful context to the arrival of international peacekeepers, including U.S. Marines, by going back to Liberia’s founding by freed American slaves in 1847. Despite the horror and remoteness of the story to most American viewers, this program is a compelling example of the important role international coverage can play in informing an American audience.

 

Michael Davie, correspondent; Scott Bronstein, producer and writer; Neil Barrett, cameraman; Margaret Burnette, Jon Goodman, senior producers; David Royle, executive producer.

 

 

NBC NEWS and DATELINE for A Pattern of Suspicion

An investigative report on racial profiling by policemen in Cincinnati and other cities

 

Devoting 14 months to a computer-assisted analysis of 4 million traffic stops in more than a dozen American cities, Dateline demonstrated how Cincinnati police used racial profiling in an effort to fight crime. The investigation was sparked by the police shooting of an unarmed black teenager because he had 14 unpaid traffic violations. The NBC team deepened its reporting on racial profiling by comparing Cincinnati to several other American cities and by questioning the effectiveness of this controversial policing technique. This report is ambitious, balanced storytelling that layers disturbing profiles of victims with alarming statistical evidence.  

 

John Larson, correspondent; Jason Samuels, Andrew Lehren, producers; Marc Rosenwasser, executive editor; David Corvo, executive producer.

 

 

NPR and RADIO DIARIES for Mandela: An Audio History

A five-part radio documentary about Nelson Mandela’s struggle to overturn apartheid

 

Edited from more than 150 hours of interviews and archival tapes, some recorded secretly, this audio history brings new texture and detail to the story of Nelson Mandela’s life and South Africa’s modern history. Though Mandela is the focus of the series, the most compelling voices are previously unheard accounts recorded as far back as 1964. The series contains no narration, only primary sources, and each of the five 13-minute episodes advances the story of apartheid with great integrity.

 

Sue Johnson, Joe Richman, producers; Deborah George, editor; Ben Shapiro, consulting producer; Chris Turpin, producer, NPR.

 

 

WBAP-AM, DALLAS for JFK 40

A riveting series of live radio reports and reflections on the assassination of JFK

 

WBAP-AM opened up a box of forgotten audio tapes of the Kennedy assassination and used them to reflect on what the event has meant to the citizens of Dallas. Leading up to the 40th anniversary of the assassination, the news staff tracked down and interviewed 40 people who were on the scene at the time. Then, pre-empting virtually all commercials, the station aired 7.5 hours of the original broadcasts on November 22, 2003, recreating what the station actually reported in real time. These riveting sequences give historical perspective to the tragedy as well as a glimpse of old-fashioned radio as the source of breaking news. This was a bold undertaking for a commercial news and talk radio station.

 

The news staff of WBAP-AM: Steve Cumming, Ellie Hogue, Lance Liguez, John Pendolino, Dan Potter, Jim Ryan, Allen Stone, and Rick Hadley, news director.

 

 

WCNC-TV, CHARLOTTE for Medicaid Dental Centers Investigation

A series of 11 investigative reports on Medicaid dental centers

 

WCNC-TV’s investigative team uncovered a chain of dentists who exploited the Medicaid system by over-treating young children, drilling and capping as many as 16 baby teeth at one time. The news team initially found children who were subjected to the frightening treatments while their parents or caretakers were kept in the lobby. Then the team followed the money trail and analyzed a database of Medicaid dental payments in North Carolina to prove how the dental group systematically profited from these traumatic procedures. The series led to Medicaid policy changes in North Carolina and Colorado.

 

Stuart Watson, reporter; Rick Yarborough, producer; Stephanie Johnson, photojournalist; Mary Alvarez, executive producer; Keith Connors, news director.

 

 

WFAA-TV, DALLAS for State of Denial

A 13-part investigation of how insurance companies denied medical claims for work-related injuries

 

This 8-month investigation of workmen’s compensation insurance and the Texas Workmen’s Compensation Commission uncovered the systematic denial of basic medical benefits for injured workers to bolster the profits of insurance companies. The news team exposed faulty peer reviews, failure to reimburse doctors, a suspicious grant to state regulators, and widespread denial of claims by injured workers even after treatment was authorized. 

 

Brett Shipp, reporter; Mark Smith, producer; Kraig Kirchem, photographer and editor; Nann Goplerud, executive producer; David Duitch, vice president, news.

 

 

FINALISTS

 

The duPont Jury also announced four finalists for their exemplary broadcast journalism:

Independent Television Service (ITVS) and Tracy Droz Tragos for Be Good, Smile Pretty on PBS

MarketPlace and American Public Media for Spoils of War on public radio stations

NOVA, WGBH-TV and Canadian Broadcasting Corp. for Crash of Flight 111

WISH-TV, Indianapolis, for Will Your Vote Count?

 

BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE AWARDS

 

Jury Composition

Serving on the nine-member jury with Chairman and Vice Dean David A. Klatell are: Roberta Baskin, former network correspondent and producer for CBS, ABC and NOW with Bill Moyers;

James W. Carey, CBS Professor of International Journalism, Columbia Journalism School, former PBS board member, and former dean, University of Illinois College of Communications; Barbara S. Cochran, president of the Radio-Television News Directors Association and former CBS News Washington bureau chief; Judy Crichton, author and founding executive producer of the American Experience series on PBS; Callie Crossley, media critic, Beat the News, WGBH-TV, Boston, program manager, Nieman Foundation, and former producer, ABC News and the PBS series Eyes on the Prize; John Dinges, associate professor of journalism at Columbia and former editorial director of NPR; Cinny Kennard, manager of NPR’s West Coast Production Center and former CBS News correspondent; and George Strait, assistant vice chancellor for public affairs, University of California at Berkeley, and former chief medical correspondent for ABC News.

 

Origin

The Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards honoring overall excellence in broadcast journalism were established in 1942 by Jessie Ball duPont in memory of her late husband, Alfred I. duPont. With his cousins, Mr. duPont transformed their gunpowder company into the chemical company E.I. duPont de Nemours. He later created a separate successful financial institution of his own in Florida and was owner of a chain of small-town, liberal newspapers in Delaware. The duPont Awards, administered since 1968 by Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, are considered the broadcast equivalent of the Pulitzer Prizes, which the Journalism School also administers.

 

Baton Significance

Award winners receive batons designed by the late American architect Louis I. Kahn. The batons are inscribed with the famous observation about the power of television by the late Edward R. Murrow: "This instrument can teach, it can illuminate; yes, it can even inspire. But it can do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends. Otherwise it is merely wires and lights in a box." (Address to the Radio and Television News Directors Association, Chicago, October 15, 1958.)

 

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