Journalist of the Year

First Place Presented to Meredith May, San Francisco Chronicle

Since joining the Chronicle staff in 1999, May has written narrative features, breaking news, investigative pieces and has covered topics ranging from public education to the 2004 Summer Olympics in Greece. In 2004, May wrote “Operation Lion Heart,” the powerful four-part narrative tale of a 9-year-old Iraqi boy who was maimed in an explosion and flown to the Bay Area for treatment. The story captivated readers and helped reunite the boy and his family and won the national SPJ award for feature writing.

“NLGJA chose to honor Meredith May to express our profound respect for an excellent story-teller and craftsperson,” said NLGJA President Eric Hegedus. “Meredith May also honors us as a dedicated member of NLGJA and a role model for outstanding feature writing and coverage.”

Second Place Presented to Richard Lacayo, TIME Magazine

Third Place Tie Presented to Andrew Sullivan, TIME Magazine and John Cloud, TIME Magazine