AZCIR earns national honors in community service, investigative reporting

Ever since Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio claimed the national stage for Tent City, an outdoor Arizona jail that served as an emblem of former Sheriff Joe Arpaio's “tough on crime” stance, it was time to round-up new reporting

AZCIR earns top honors in community service, investigative reporting I’m excited to share that AZCIR has earned two first place honors from the 2023 Editor & Publisher Magazine EPPY Awards competition, including best community service/project reporting and best investigative/enterprise video.  The competition included more than 250 entries representing 100-plus media organizations from across the world. Both awards were for AZCIR's recent series, In the Sheriff We Trust, a nearly yearlong collaboration with the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at ASU's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. The judge’s comment highlighted the critical public service this collaborative reporting provided: “Wow. Important, timely and extremely relevant reporting on an overlooked but frightening trend. Good explanatory work, including important context. The work clearly made a difference in policy for some states ... Really impressive that this was done by an "independent, nonpartisan and nonprofit newsroom." I'll be watching this story closely going forward. Congratulations.” We're honored to receive this recognition. We're also grateful for the tremendous work of our colleagues at the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism.

At AZCIR, we don’t do this work for awards. But we are honored, of course, to share the recognition with newsrooms across the world for reporting that betters our communities. The work we and our colleagues produce matters, and I hope you feel as strongly as we do about the role journalism plays in our respective communities. I also hope you find enough value in our journalism to support it with a tax-deductible donation. Thanks to local and national funders, any tax-deductible contribution you make—up to $1,000—from now until year's end will be matched dollar for dollar. If you set up a new monthly recurring donation, those same donors will match the gift at its 12 month value. MATCH MY DONATION! Thanks, as always, for following and supporting our work. With gratitude, Brandon Quester Executive Director and Editor Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting