Alumni from the Kent State School of Journalism and Mass Communication were part of two 2018 Pulitzer Prize winning stories.
Terry DeMio, '86, the heroin beat reporter for the Cincinnati Enquirer, was one of two lead writers for “Seven Days of Heroin,” which won the Pulitzer for local news reporting. She has been reporting on the opioid epidemic in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky for several years.
The story chronicled an "ordinary" week for people dealing with the heroin crisis, from those facing addiction and their families, to paramedics and police officers. Judges called it a “riveting and insightful narrative and video documenting seven days of greater Cincinnati's heroin epidemic, revealing how the deadly addiction has ravaged families and communities.”
Kent State alumnae Emily Mills, ’16, and Jona Ison, ’02, also contributed to reporting for the project, and Brian Smith, '14, contributed photography. Mills is a reporter and Smith, a photojournalist, at the Mansfield News Journal, and Ison is a reporter at the Chillicothe Gazette. Both papers are owned by Gannett, the same parent company as the Enquirer. Alumnus Joe Powell, '86, is the Enquirer's projects manager/planning editor.
The Arizona Republic and USA Today Network won the Pulitzer Prize for explanatory reporting for "The Wall," an examination of every mile of the U.S./Mexico border. Kristen DelGuzzi, '98, serves as Senior Editor for Digital and Audience Growth at the Republic, and Mark Lauffer, '81, is the homepage producer for azcentral.com.
Fourteen JMC alumni have previously won Pulitzer Prizes. Read about their work.