Journal Sentinel Wins Award for Church Sex Abuse Coverage

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
September 26, 2014

http://www.jsonline.com/news/religion/journal-sentinel-wins-award-for-church-sex-abuse-coverage-b99359889z1-277343481.html

The Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee, which faces more than a dozen civil fraud lawsuits over its handling of clergy sex abuse cases, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January. As the case proceeds, we'll have updates, analysis, documents and more.

The national Religion Newswriters Association has honored the Journal Sentinel's coverage of the release of archdiocesan sex abuse documents, the controversy over a Wauwatosa priest and the continuing bankruptcy proceedings.

The 2014 Gerald A. Renner Enterprise Religion Report of the Year honors a series or package of stories that shows enterprise and unusual effort, and uses multimedia. The award is named after an award-winning religion journalist and author.

The Journal Sentinel won for a collection of 10 pieces, spearheaded by Annysa Johnson, who has been covering religion for five years. Karen Herzog, Gina Barton, Ellen Gabler, Kevin Crowe, Allan Vestal and Dave Umhoefer of the Journal Sentinel all shared in the award.

The announcement was made at the association's national convention this month in Atlanta.

The judges said: "It was a Herculean task to comb through thousands of pages of documents released by the local archdiocese, and translate the information into stories that both captured the financial and human implications of pedophile priests and the hierarchy that is now claiming bankruptcy. From the compelling revelation that an archbishop tried to protect tens of millions of dollars to a chilling interactive map of priests and their abuses, this exemplary effort puts readers in the front row of this rather disturbing piece of history."

The Renner award is open to all media. Minnesota Public Radio took second place this year; Religion News Service took third.

Johnson received an honorable mention for the RNA's Religion Reporter of the Year in 2012.