The most powerful reporting from nonprofit news outlets over the past year went beyond simply telling compelling stories.
Finalists for the fifth annual Nonprofit News Awards, or INNYs, presented by the Institute for Nonprofit News, exposed dangerous conditions in communities, such as how fertilizer tainted with “forever chemicals” poisoned livestock and land in Texas and how local governments failed to mitigate pervasive lead exposure in predominantly Latino communities in California. Finalists engaged communities and empowered their audiences to act, such as by voting out judges in Illinois for judicial misconduct.
Judges’ comments on the entries include words like “meticulous,” “beautiful,” “fascinating” and “incredibly impressive.” In the case of a Stocktonia article on local officials’ work to clean up fuel and oil leaking from a sunken vintage cruise ship — one once used by a James Bond villain– one judge called the reporting “super quirky and cool.”
In addition to honoring nonprofit outlets’ excellence in journalism, the INNYs recognize outstanding leadership, community service, collaboration and innovation — categories that differ from typical news contests but reflect the values of nonprofit news. Many of the entries have a civic focus, not only informing readers about important issues happening in their communities but also fostering conversation and action.
Seventy-six journalists and nonprofit news professionals from various media outlets selected the finalists from a pool of almost 600 entries. INN will announce award winners during a ceremony in New Orleans on Sept. 10.
Within the award categories, entries are grouped by most recent fiscal year expenses, allowing INN to spotlight outlets that are exceeding expectations for their size. The Margin, which is a finalist in the micro division of several categories, is one example.
A judge described an interactive news feature from The Margin as “an incredible piece of storytelling.” The quality of the reporting project, which explored the devastating impact of Hurricane Helene on Appalachia, “compares more favorably to news outlets with far higher annual budgets,” the judge wrote. The “visual and written elements built off and complemented each other. The use of visuals beyond photography to convey the message added an additional layer to the story, which was in turn expanded by the drone and satellite image visual sliders.”
In the same category, the Insight Award for Visual Journalism, another judge praised the Toledo Free Press for the compelling ways it captured the joy of transgender and gender nonconforming people “in a critical political moment.”
“While locally focused, the photo story speaks to broad national issues,” the judge wrote. “From dancing to injecting testosterone, each photo made me feel ‘in situ.’”
Among the entrants, whether hyperlocal or focused on national issues, judges noted the finalists’ masterful storytelling as well as the impact, such as changes in laws or policies. In a comment on a finalist for the INNovator award, a judge noted the importance of reporting on civic issues in engaging ways.
“Too often, civic news is delivered in an ‘eat your vegetables’ format,” the judge wrote. The work, in this case from Mirror Indy, “shows what’s possible when local news meets audiences where they are, moves them emotionally, and inspires thoughtfulness.”
Finalists in the journalism categories
Best Investigative Journalism Award
Honors a single story or series that uncovered significant and impactful news based on the reporters’ own investigation and which advances and serves the public interest.
Micro Division
The Margin, A River of Deception: Historical Documents Reveal How Seattle City Light’s Dams Deprived the Skagit River of Fish, Impacting the Upper Skagit Tribe’s Treaty Rights for Over a Century, Rico Moore, Bryce Cracknell, Chona Kasinger
The Margin, Eroding Indigenous Sovereignty: How Climate Change Complicates the Fight for Tribal Nations to Prove Who They Are, Ottavia Spaggiari, Ko Bragg, Chona Kasinger
The Objective, The Editor of a New York City Newspaper Bullied Reporters for Years. Then, He Was Promoted, Alexis Allison
Small Division
The Pulp, Community for Profit, Michael Cast
The Center for Collaborative Investigative Journalism, Democracy Deferred, Staff
MindSite News, Fateful Encounters: Reporting on Policing and Mental Health, Josh McGhee, Melissa Dai, Glendalys Valdes, Sela Breen, Kari Lydersen
InvestigateWest, Savior Complex, Wilson Criscione, Kelsey Turner
Medium Division
Jewish Currents, Defunding Dissent, Will Alden
PublicSource, EQT’s Gas Play: There is Something Wrong Under New Freeport, Quinn Glabicki
The Narwhal, Inside the TC Energy Tower, Matt Simmons, Mike De Souza, Fatima Syed, Sharon J. Riley
Injustice Watch, The Tenant Trap, Alejandra Cancino, Maya Dukmasova
Large Division
Center for Public Integrity, Mother Jones, Reveal, PRX, 40 Acres and a Lie, Alexia Fernández Campbell, April Simpson, Pratheek Rebala, Jennifer LaFleur, Nadia Hamdan, Roy Hurst, Cynthia Rodriguez, Jamilah King, Mc Nelly Torres, Wesley Lowery, Peter Newbatt Smith, Al Letson
The Marshall Project, Reveal (PRX), Mother Jones, USA Today, She Ate a Poppy Seed Salad Just Before Giving Birth. Then They Took Her Baby Away., Shoshana Walter
The Texas Tribune, Texas’ Border Wall, Zach Despart, Yuriko Schumacher, Uriel J. García
The 74, Unwelcome to America, Jo Napolitano
Insight Award for Explanatory Journalism
Honors a single story or a series of explanatory reporting that provides insight and understanding of a significant and complex subject.
Micro Division
Stocktonia, A Sunken Ship; A Hidden Risk; A Chance for a Journalism Partnership to Shine, Staff
The Margin, After Allen Field: Lessons from Houston’s Mandatory Buyout Program, Amal Ahmed, Ko Bragg, Danielle Villasana
The Margin, Mining the Past, Threatening the Future: Facing the Brunt of the Mineral Rush, Tribal Nations Sue the Federal Government, Ottavia Spaggiari, Ko Bragg, Ash Ponders
Eden Prairie Local News (EPLN), Preserving Eden Prairie Lakeshores, Past and Present, Mark Weber, Kelley Regan
AfroLA, Water and Power, Katie Licari, Dana Amihere, Alexandra Kanik, Alex Tatusian, Justin Allen
Small Division
InvestigateWest, Broken Records, Daniel Walters
San Francisco Public Press, In Marginalized SF Bay Communities, Toxic Waste Cleanups Take Longer, Audrey Mei-Yi Brown
MindSite News and palabra, Silent Battles / Luchas Invisibles, Staff
The Global Reporting Centre, PRX, State of Play: Summer Games, Andrea Crossan, Britney Dennison, Sarah Berman, Jesse Winter, Sharon Nadeem, Katarina Sabados, Andrew Munroe
Fredericksburg Free Press, The Tribe Podcast, Joey LoMonaco, Taft Coghill Jr., Kendall Perkinson
Local News Matters, The Tunnel Vision: A Look at California’s $20 Billion Solution to Its Water Crisis, Ruth Dusseault
Inkstick Media, Things That Go Boom: Hit Print for War, Laicie Heeley, Helena de Groot
Medium Division
Food & Environment Reporting Network, Buzzkill, Rowan Jacobsen, Teresa Cotsirilos, Elliott Woods, Bridget Huber, Eve Abrams, Dan Charles
Public Health Watch, Fumed, David Leffler, Savanna Strott, Salina Arredondo, Jordan Gass-Poore’
New Bedford Light, Immigration 2025: A Series, Gerardo Beltran Salinas, Anastasia Lennon, Colin Hogan, Eleonora Bianchi, Grace Ferguson, Antonio Beltran, Kevin G. Andrade, Arthur Hirsch
Capital & Main, In Rural Pennsylvania, Crypto Mining Offers a Lifeline for Dying Gas Wells, Audrey Carleton
The Imprint, Medicated in Foster Care: Who’s Looking Out?, Michael Fitzgerald, Jeremy Loundenback, Susanti Sarkar
Large Division
International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and partners, Caspian Cabals, Staff
Honolulu Civil Beat, Guardians of the Deep, Nathan Eagle, April Estrellon, Kawika Lopez
The Connecticut Mirror, Priced Out, Jenna Carlesso, Dave Altimari, Katy Golvala, Andrew Brown
The Marshall Project, The Hardest Case for Mercy, Joe Sexton
Breaking Barriers Award
Honors reporting that brought new understanding to an issue or topic affecting people or communities that are historically underrepresented, disadvantaged or marginalized, resulting in impactful change.
Micro Division
The Margin, Eroding Indigenous Sovereignty: How Climate Change Complicates the Fight for Tribal Nations to Prove Who They Are, Ottavia Spaggiari, Ko Bragg, Chona Kasinger
The Objective, The Editor of a New York City Newspaper Bullied Reporters for Years. Then, He Was Promoted., Alexis Allison
Small Division
InvestigateWest, A Different Standard, Melanie Henshaw, Wilson Criscione
Charlottesville Tomorrow, Giving More People a Say in Affordable Housing in Central Virginia, Erin O’Hare
InvestigateWest, Nowhere to Go, Whitney Bryen
Shelterforce, Will This Resident Group Get Full Control of the Complex They Helped Fix?, Amanda Abrams
Medium Division
Cardinal News, Cardinal 250: Virginia’s Stories. A Nation’s Birth, Staff
Jewish Currents, Dispatches from Gaza, Staff
Public Health Watch, Fumed, David Leffler, Savanna Strott, Salina Arredondo, Jordan Gass-Poore’
El Tímpano, Poisoned Pipes and Painted Walls: Oakland’s Pervasive Lead Problem, Jasmine Aguilera, Cassandra Garibay, Hiram Duran
Large Division
Inside Climate News, Captured: How Pesticide Regulators Place Industry Profits Above Public Health, Liza Gross, Peter Aldhous
Open Campus, Transforming Higher Education News for Incarcerated Readers, Charlotte West
The 74, Unwelcome to America, Jo Napolitano
Community Champion Award
Honors an INN member organization that made a significant contribution to the well-being of its community through a journalism-centered project or service.
Micro Division
Austin Free Press, Austin Free Press and Huston-Tillotson University Train Journalists of Color, Staff
The New Pine Plains Herald, The New Pine Plains Herald’s reporting on ADUs brings millions in funding to rural service area, Patrick Grego, Darrah Cloud
Small Division
The Kansas City Defender, BREAL Academy: Black Radical Education for Abolition and Liberation, Ryan Sorrell, Melissa Ferrer-Civil
Open Vallejo, The Secret Death of Darryl Dean Mefferd, Staff
Medium Division
Injustice Watch, Check Your Judges, Staff
Injustice Watch, The Tenant Trap, Staff
Large Division
Capital B, Reduced to Ash: The Eaton Fire’s Impact on Black Families, Adam Mahoney
The Texas Tribune, Texas Farmers Say “Forever Chemicals” in Fertilizer Poisoned Their Land, Alejandra Martinez
INNovator Award
For an organization that produced an innovative idea or practice that had a positive financial impact on the newsroom and will help the newsroom serve its community or audience into the future.
Micro Division
Eden Prairie Local News (EPLN), EPLN Prairie Pulse Events Newsletter, Joanna Werch Takes, Brianna Collett, Amy Nylander
LARC, LARC Reporting Incubator, Ari Saperstein, Dana Amihere
The Record North Shore, The Record Express, Staff
Small Division
Conecta Arizona, Beyond the Elections – Immigrants Belong, Staff
Oklahoma Watch, Wisdom of the Nations, Ted Streuli, Shaun Witt
Medium Division
Prism, Reflective Journalism Project, Staff
Cardinal News, The Pod Squad Heard Cardinal’s Audience, Dutchie Jessee, Zachary Shelton, Sherry Quinley, Staff
Large Division
Mirror Indy, Outside the Journalism Box, Jennifer Delgadillo
The 19th, The 19th News Network, Abby Johnston
Insight Award for Visual Journalism
Honors a single story or a series of stories that uses photography and/or other visual media to more accurately portray a community that has traditionally been underrepresented or misrepresented in news media.
Micro Division
The Margin, Pursuing Higher Ground: Six Months After the Hurricane That Changed Appalachia, Christian Monterrosa, Trey Walk, Bryce Cracknell
Toledo Free Press, Trans and Understanding, Lori King
Small Division
Berkeleyside, Golden Gate Fields, Ximena Natera
El Tecolote, San Francisco’s RV Communities Fight Displacement, Pablo Unzueta, Erika Carlos
Medium Division
The Narwhal, ‘We’re Just Getting Started’: from Alberta to Montana, Blackfeet Guardians Hope to Bring Back the Buffalo Jump, Gavin John, Jimmy Thomson, Michelle Cyca
inewsource, Fentanyl: A Decade of Death, Steve Breen, Iran “JR” Martinez, Giovanni Moujaes, Jamie Self
Large Division
Retro Report, PBS, Citizen Nation, Staff
The Trace, She Lost Her Sons to Shootings. She Now Carries Their Legacy, Vincent Alban
Finalists in the Overall categories
Startup of the Year
Honors a young organization (operating for less than three years) for establishing strong support of their journalism throughout the community and the revenue growth to sustain it.
Journalism Collaboration of the Year
Honors a news-oriented project or ongoing partnership that exemplifies the culture of sharing and cooperation in nonprofit news and expands the impact of its journalism.
Center for Public Integrity, Mother Jones, Reveal, PRX, 40 Acres and a Lie, Alexia Fernández Campbell, April Simpson, Pratheek Rebala, Jennifer LaFleur, Roy Hurst, Wesley Lowery, Cynthia Rodriguez, Nadia Hamdan, Jamilah King, Mc Nelly Torres, Peter Newbatt Smith, Al Letson
WyoFile, Casper Star-Tribune, Gillette News Record, Powell Tribune, The Sheridan Press, Wyoming Tribune Eagle, America’s Growing Political Divide Reaches Wyoming School Boards, City Councils, Staff
The Buckeye Flame, The Marshall Project, He’s 23 and in an Ohio Prison for Exposing Someone to HIV — Even Though He Couldn’t Transmit the Virus, Staff
The Tributary, Miami Herald, Red Lights, Green Cash, Staff
Retro Report, KFF Health News, WORLD, Silence in Sikeston, Staff
The Texas Tribune, ProPublica, Votebeat, Texas Voter Rolls, Lexi Churchill, Vianna Davila, James Barragán, Natalia Contreras
St. Louis Public Radio, APM Reports, The Marshall Project, Unsolved, Staff
Nonprofit Newcomer of the Year
Honors an individual who is new to the field of nonprofit news (less than two years) and is contributing to the success of their organization through innovation.
The Sick Times, Heather Hogan
The Dial, Mara Wilson
Emerging Leader of the Year
Honors an individual with less than five years in executive leadership who is an emerging luminary in the field.
The Xylom, Alex Ip
Conecta Arizona, Maritza L. Félix
Sahan Journal, Mayuri Meera
Join INN for the 2025 Nonprofit News Awards in New Orleans on Sept. 10: Reserve your ticket.
