Deadline Club

Judges’ Comments
"Four years after the World Trade Center towers were vaporized and nearly 3,000 people perished, the Daily News assigned a team of reporters to follow the money trail. Where did the billions of dollars earmarked for relief, rebuilding and recovery go? After a four-month investigation, the Daily News uncovered multiple abuses in the use of federal recovery funds with millions of dollars spent on projects having nothing to do with 9/11. Using computer analysis and records research the Daily News showed how negligent government bureaucracy and exploitation by individuals of questionable character resulted in widespread waste, fraud and mismanagement. The Daily News says this disappointing outcome is part of a continuing investigation and we encourage the paper to continue the efforts.

Judges’ Comments
Ellen Schultz’s thorough and innovative coverage of the complex world of pensions exposes how federal benefits law has gradually shifted its protections from employees to the companies that employ them. Her writing illuminates what could be a mundane topic by combining well-researched reporting with compelling accounts of the effects these changes on people ranging from widows to former NFL players. By distilling arcane financial data into something easily understood she produces original and oftentimes surprising stories that not only explain complicated pension issues, but provide a service to readers.

Judges’ Comments
What started as a nostalgic feature on Long Island’s potato-farming evolved into an extraordinary piece of investigative journalism. In the end the extraordinary work of Newsday’s reporters reconnected two so-called invisible men with families they had lost. Starting with little more than names and faded memories, Newsday headed to Georgia, knocked on doors, dug through old records and ended up restoring the identities and family links to two workers who had been all but forgotten by society.

Judges’ Comments
"In two dozen pages of stories and pictures, the Daily News covered every aspect of the first day of New York City’s transit strike with clarity and a dash of humor as millions of transit riders struggled to move about the city. The frustration of commuters, striking workers and public officials was brought to life in vivid detail and the Daily News showed the strikers effect on myriad parts of city life from businesses to schools. If it was moving (or wasn’t) the Daily News was there."

Judges’ Comments
"Our judges were impressed with the amount of detail and clarity the Bloomberg reporters were able to squeeze into their stories under heavy deadline pressure. Their ability to craft six stories that were both informative and insightful within a 24-hour time-frame left us wondering whether there were any details for anyone else to report."

Judges’ Comments
"The award goes to Asjylyn Loder’s investigative series exposing how corrupt Patterson, N.J., city officials steered land contracts to well-connected developers at the expense of the city’s working poor. Her reporting pinpointed, then followed up on what might have appeared to be small discrepancies, but which added up to a picture of government corruption. In addition to connecting the dots, her painstaking research made such a strong case that the city council voted to rescind the shady deals, only to later back down. The story didn’t end by cleaning up city hall, as we would have hoped. But it only proves how difficult it can be to crack entrenched cronyism. Loder did, getting inside through the kind of thorough document search and dogged interviewing that exemplifies the best in our profession. And we also commend The Herald News for committing so much of her time to the story — a commitment to enterprise journalism that yielded all finalists in this category."