2012 National Press Club Ann Cottrell Free Animal Reporting Award Winners
(L-R) Samira Puskar NBC News, McClatchy Newspapers Washington bureau chief James Asher accepting for Chris Adams, Lisa Guerrero of Inside Edition and Deborah Nelson, Mother Jones.
Print/Online:
Winner
"Chimps: Life in a Lab" by Chris Adams, McClatchy Newspapers
In a three-part, 6,000 word series, investigative reporter Chris Adams, went far beyond most mainstream and scientific publications in examining the usefulness of chimpanzees in medical research. By combining science reporting with investigative techniques, Adams studied more than 30,000 pages of chimpanzee medical records dating to the 1950s, interviewed leading experts, and reviewed more than 200 scientific articles. He found compelling evidence that chimps and humans experience diseases differently and that tremendous advances in laboratory techniques mean that knowledge once gained only by examining a live animal can now be learned in a petri dish. In his series, Adams told the story of one chimpanzee, Lennie, as well as 200 others, including six who died at a federal facility in New Mexico, three of electrocution.
The response to the series was dramatic, prompting hundreds of readers to email McClachy and dozens more to contact the Institute of Medicine. A few months later, Scientific American cited Adams' reporting in an editorial headlined, "Ban Chimp Testing: Why it is time to end invasive biomedical research on chimpanzees."
Adams series ran in April of 2011. Just six months later, an Institute of Medicine panel found that experimenting on chimpanzees was "not necessary for most biomedical research" and that advances in science "have rendered chimpanzees largely nonessential as research subjects." A short time later, the National Institutes of Health suspended new chimp research.
Adams' reporting came at a critical time and provided the public important new information in the the longstanding debate over the treatment of man's closest cousins.
Honorable Mention:
"The Cruelest Show on Earth" by Deborah Nelson, Mother Jones
Using court records, thousands of government and corporate documents, interviews with officials, experts and whistleblowers, Deborah Nelson tells the story of the treatment of elephants at Ringling Brothers & Barnam & Bailey Circus. She found shocking evidence of injury, illness, abuse and fatal accidents among these gentle giants. She revealed that they spend much of their lives locked in chains, confined in trains and subject to beatings, whippings and electric shock. She also detailed the history of more than a dozen investigations of Ringling by federal regulators confirming this abuse, which had not resulted in action.
Her story was published in October of 2011. The next month, the USDA announced the largest penalty in the history of the Animal Welfare Act against Ringling. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said "This settlement sends a direct message to the public and to those who exhibit animals that the USDA will take all necessary steps to protect animals regulated under the Animal Welfare Act." PETA’s general counsel said that Nelson’s story “undoubtedly contributed to this remarkable step by the USDA.”
The judges commend Nelson's thorough and compelling reporting on this important issue.
Broadcast:
Winner
"Detroit Dog Rescue", NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams - Kevin Tibbles and Samira Puskar
By telling the story of a dedicated group of individuals working on a shoestring to save stray dogs in the Detroit area, Tibbles and Puskar put a spotlight on a serious and heartbreaking problem - the abandonment of animals by owners who can no longer afford to keep them during an economic crisis.
The NBC team followed the volunteers who stepped in where the overburdened and understaffed animal control system fell short, rescuing scores of homeless and terrified dogs - some suffering from injuries from cars, and even guns. When the story first aired on the “Making a Difference Segment”, the rescue group was down to its last $43. By morning, they had received $20,000 from viewers.
Nightly News ran an update the next day and aired a second package later in the week which resulted in donations of nearly $200,000 to the group. Later in the year, NBC News learned that a viewer who was battling terminal cancer had seen the stories and bequeathed $1.5 million to Detroit Dog Rescue. The group is using that money to build a no-kill shelter. This story clearly made a difference for the homeless dogs of Detroit.
Honorable Mention
“Animal Hoarding” and “Tiger Investigations”, Inside Edition, Lisa Guerrero
Inside Edition took a look at two serious threats facing animals: the all-too common phenomenon known as hoarding and unscrupulous dealers who trade in exotic animals.
Correspondent Lisa Guerrero followed the Philadelphia SPCA as they dealt with one of the most tragic cases of animal hoarding they have encountered, involving a van full of cats in horrific condition. By documenting this case, Inside Edition showed the public the grave dangers posed by well-meaning but misguided hoarders.
Inside Edition went undercover in two other reports to expose how lax laws governing the private ownership of exotic animals has led to an abundance of tigers kept as pets in backyards and how tiger cubs suffer from neglect and abuse while on public display at shopping malls across the country. The report helped prompt the state of Ohio to re-examine and tighten laws governing the private ownership of tigers and other exotic animals.
Winner
"Chimps: Life in a Lab" by Chris Adams, McClatchy Newspapers
In a three-part, 6,000 word series, investigative reporter Chris Adams, went far beyond most mainstream and scientific publications in examining the usefulness of chimpanzees in medical research. By combining science reporting with investigative techniques, Adams studied more than 30,000 pages of chimpanzee medical records dating to the 1950s, interviewed leading experts, and reviewed more than 200 scientific articles. He found compelling evidence that chimps and humans experience diseases differently and that tremendous advances in laboratory techniques mean that knowledge once gained only by examining a live animal can now be learned in a petri dish. In his series, Adams told the story of one chimpanzee, Lennie, as well as 200 others, including six who died at a federal facility in New Mexico, three of electrocution.
The response to the series was dramatic, prompting hundreds of readers to email McClachy and dozens more to contact the Institute of Medicine. A few months later, Scientific American cited Adams' reporting in an editorial headlined, "Ban Chimp Testing: Why it is time to end invasive biomedical research on chimpanzees."
Adams series ran in April of 2011. Just six months later, an Institute of Medicine panel found that experimenting on chimpanzees was "not necessary for most biomedical research" and that advances in science "have rendered chimpanzees largely nonessential as research subjects." A short time later, the National Institutes of Health suspended new chimp research.
Adams' reporting came at a critical time and provided the public important new information in the the longstanding debate over the treatment of man's closest cousins.
Honorable Mention:
"The Cruelest Show on Earth" by Deborah Nelson, Mother Jones
Using court records, thousands of government and corporate documents, interviews with officials, experts and whistleblowers, Deborah Nelson tells the story of the treatment of elephants at Ringling Brothers & Barnam & Bailey Circus. She found shocking evidence of injury, illness, abuse and fatal accidents among these gentle giants. She revealed that they spend much of their lives locked in chains, confined in trains and subject to beatings, whippings and electric shock. She also detailed the history of more than a dozen investigations of Ringling by federal regulators confirming this abuse, which had not resulted in action.
Her story was published in October of 2011. The next month, the USDA announced the largest penalty in the history of the Animal Welfare Act against Ringling. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said "This settlement sends a direct message to the public and to those who exhibit animals that the USDA will take all necessary steps to protect animals regulated under the Animal Welfare Act." PETA’s general counsel said that Nelson’s story “undoubtedly contributed to this remarkable step by the USDA.”
The judges commend Nelson's thorough and compelling reporting on this important issue.
Broadcast:
Winner
"Detroit Dog Rescue", NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams - Kevin Tibbles and Samira Puskar
By telling the story of a dedicated group of individuals working on a shoestring to save stray dogs in the Detroit area, Tibbles and Puskar put a spotlight on a serious and heartbreaking problem - the abandonment of animals by owners who can no longer afford to keep them during an economic crisis.
The NBC team followed the volunteers who stepped in where the overburdened and understaffed animal control system fell short, rescuing scores of homeless and terrified dogs - some suffering from injuries from cars, and even guns. When the story first aired on the “Making a Difference Segment”, the rescue group was down to its last $43. By morning, they had received $20,000 from viewers.
Nightly News ran an update the next day and aired a second package later in the week which resulted in donations of nearly $200,000 to the group. Later in the year, NBC News learned that a viewer who was battling terminal cancer had seen the stories and bequeathed $1.5 million to Detroit Dog Rescue. The group is using that money to build a no-kill shelter. This story clearly made a difference for the homeless dogs of Detroit.
Honorable Mention
“Animal Hoarding” and “Tiger Investigations”, Inside Edition, Lisa Guerrero
Inside Edition took a look at two serious threats facing animals: the all-too common phenomenon known as hoarding and unscrupulous dealers who trade in exotic animals.
Correspondent Lisa Guerrero followed the Philadelphia SPCA as they dealt with one of the most tragic cases of animal hoarding they have encountered, involving a van full of cats in horrific condition. By documenting this case, Inside Edition showed the public the grave dangers posed by well-meaning but misguided hoarders.
Inside Edition went undercover in two other reports to expose how lax laws governing the private ownership of exotic animals has led to an abundance of tigers kept as pets in backyards and how tiger cubs suffer from neglect and abuse while on public display at shopping malls across the country. The report helped prompt the state of Ohio to re-examine and tighten laws governing the private ownership of tigers and other exotic animals.
