Multimedia

2009 Casey Medals

Winner: "Age of Uncertainty," Roanoke.com/The Roanoke Times
By Beth Macy, Josh Meltzer, Seth Gitner, Carole Tarrant, Tracy Boyer, Alec Rooney, Meg Martin, Matt Chittum and Grant Jedlinsky

A brilliantly structured presentation on the challenges facing a region and its aging population. By documenting the stories of caregivers, patients and families, the multimedia project is a great balance of narrative and user utility – not an easy thing to achieve. The incorporation of numerous social networking sites demonstrates a creative use of the medium to tell an important story.

Runner-Up: "The Boys of Christ Child House," Detroit Free Press
By: Brian Kaufman, Kathleen Galligan, Regina H. Boone, Kathy Kieliszewski, Robin Erb, James Thomas, Craig Porter and Nancy Andrews

An incredibly engaging presentation about the lives of children in a Detroit foster home. Thoroughly reported and well designed, the piece focuses on a world that is often removed from the public eye. The combination of video and stills is particularly effective; the entire multimedia presentation is intuitive and items are easy to find and navigate.

2008 Casey Medals

Winner: "Fixing D.C.'s Schools," Washingtonpost.com/The Washington Post
By Liz Heron, Nelson Hsu, Nancy Donaldson, Ben de la Cruz, Dion Haynes, Aruna Jain, Jahi Chikwendiu, Lonnae O’Neal Parker, Dan Keating, April Witt, James Grimaldi, David S. Fallis, Adrian Holovaty, Larry Roberts, Barbara Vobejda, Joe Stephens and Lois Raimondo

A phenomenal work in its breadth and its attention to detail, this is a powerful portrait of a school system where good people and teachers struggle, poor teachers persist, children with marginal literacy are promoted and buildings have been allowed to decay. The interactive map is a brilliant merge of databases that creates a vivid snapshot of each school. The slide shows, audio, teacher profiles, stories all work together as a memorable documentary

Runner-Up: "Hidden Hazards," Chicagotribune.com
By: Chicagotribune.com Staff

Investigative reporting at its finest. A tremendous service to consumers, readers and Web visitors in documenting the failings of the system that was meant to protect us from harm.

Honorable Mention: "One Fatal Shot," Seattle Post-Intelligencer
By: Karen Ducey, Claudia Rowe, Rob Sumner, Brian Chin and Curt Milton

A haunting story of a close, extended multi-ethnic family's experience with gun violence. The team showed true craft to produce work that takes the reader to a higher level of understanding.

2007 Casey Medals

Winner: "Being a Black Man," The Washington Post
By Tanya Ballard, Nancy Donaldson, Tom Kennedy, Dee Swann, Donna Britt, Ju-Don Roberts, Kevin Merida, Robert Pierre, Sari Horwitz, Sydney Trent, V. Dion Haynes, Michel du Cille, Michael Fletcher, David Finkel, Wil Haygood, Krissah Williams, Keith Jenkins, Tamara Jones, Steven Holmes, Neely Tucker, Marcia Davis, Dennis Brack, Richard Morin, Keith Alexander, Lonnae O’Neal Parker, Darryl Fears, Marvin Joseph, Jahi Chikwendiu, Kevin Clark, Nikki Kahn, Beth Broadwater, Dwuan June, Jon Wile, Laura Stanton, Meg Smith, Stephen Crockett, Joe Davidson, Claudia Deane, Nelson Hsu, Ben de la Cruz, Pierre Kattar, Hamil Harris, Sholnn Freeman and Jennifer Crandall

This project makes an important contribution to racial dialogue in our nation’s capital, integrating a huge amount of material into an attractive and navigable interface that encourages the visitor to sample, browse and dig deep. The site offers users a panoply of choices including video presentations, audio narratives and opinion blogs.

Runner-Up: "Oakland: A Plague of Killing," San Francisco Chronicle
By: : Marcus Chan, Jason Johnson, Jim Herron Zamora, Justin Beck, Gus D’Angelo, Lacy Atkins, Dan Jung, Chris Heredia, Peter Fagan, Michael Collier, James Irwin and Charles Burress

This informative, poignant package tracks and uncovers many of the reasons behind Oakland’s escalating homicide rate.

Honorable Mention: "Blighted Homeland," Los Angeles Times
By: Colin Crawford, Gail Fisher and MediaStorm

This impressive entry, replete with photo galleries and maps, reveals how waste from Cold War-era uranium mines contaminated parts of the Navajo Nation.

about this award

The Casey Medals for Meritorious Journalism recognize exemplary reporting on children and families in the U.S. More than 4,500 journalists have competed for Casey Medals since 1994.