This year, San Quentin News received eight California News Publishers Awards for its continued dedication to reporting on social justice issues.
Former editor-in-chief, Steve Brooks won five awards — two 2nd places, two 3rd places and one 4th place award and Staff writers Jerry Gearin, Marcus Henderson and Joshua Strange each won 5th place awards.
Additionally, San Quentin News excelled in the “Print Inside Page Layout and Design” category and won 5th place for the design of the “Black History Month” double-page spread published in February 2023.
The award named Editor-in-Chief Marcus Henderson. The article “Absolute Determination” from the March 2023 edition earned Brooks 2nd place in the “Sports Feature Story” category. Brooks won another 2nd place in the “Coverage of Business and the Economy” category for his article “Basic Act takes aim at Canteen Price Gouging” published in April 2023.
His editorial “No More ‘Inmates’” in the August 2023, edition won Brooks 3rd place in the “Editorial Comment” category.
Brooks also won 3rd place in the “Feature Story” category for his May 2023 front-page story “Death Row Transfers Face Mixed Reactions.” In the same edition, Brooks won 4th place in the Coverage of Local Government category for “California lawmaker Undaunted in Efforts to End Involuntary Servitude Prison.”
Journalism Guild Chair Jerry Gearin won 5th place in the category of “Housing and Land-Use Reporting” for his March 2023 article “Group Helps Former Prisoners Understand Housing Barriers.”
Former Senior Editor Joshua Strange’s article “Growing research shows impact of poor nutrition on prison violence” published in April 2023 received 5th place in the category of “Health Reporting.”
The San Quentin News competed against papers like Santa Maria Sun, Santa Barbara Independent, Comstock’s Magazine, Voice of OC, Fresno Land, San Francisco Chronicle, Daily Press, Coachella Valley Independent, The Observer Newspapers, and Grunion Gazette. The California News Publishers Association has seven divisions of recognition and San Quentin News competed in divisions four and five.
San Quentin News has a mission to report on rehabilitative efforts in California prisons to increase public safety and advance social justice.
