Pulitzer Photography Honorees on KobreGuide

Congratulations to all 94th annual Pulitzer Prizewinners in Journalism, announced today by Columbia University. The winner of the Feature Photography award, and the two finalists in that category, had previously been showcased on KobreGuide as stellar multimedia presentations .

Craig F. Walker of The Denver Post won the Pulitzer "for his intimate portrait of a teenager who joins the Army at the height of insurgent violence in Iraq, poignantly searching for meaning and manhood. "

See it here: Ian Fisher: American Soldier

Nominated as finalists in this category:

* Mary F. Calvert (my former student!) "for her courageous work published in The Washington Times that vividly documents how rapes, by the tens of thousands, have become a weapon of war in Congo."

See it here: Rape and Recovery in the Congo

* Robert Cohen of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch "for his sensitive portrayal of homeless suburban families camping in motels during the recession, often recording memorable emotional moments. "

See it here: Motel Manor: Suburban Homelessness

All three visual stories represent a significant investment of time, talent and resources by not only the visual journalists, but also the news organizations they worked for. As we originally reported on KobreGuide.com:

The Denver Post spent two years following Fisher on this journey from high school graduation through boot camp, deployment in Iraq and his eventual return home. Through a series of 8 videos, this exhaustive multimedia project chronicles Fisher’s life as it is shaped by his experiences of young adulthood.

The project intersperses still photographs and videos interviews with Fisher, his parents and Army colleagues, capturing his day-to-day experiences as a recruit, soldier, son and friend.

The project was published over three days and includes photo galleries, in-depth stories and a unique collection of multimedia extras including a glossary of military terms, snapshots through Humvee windows and messages from soldiers to their loved ones back home.

Well deserved kudos to all.

SEE ALSO: New York Times' Lens blog

Collateral Murder?

Collateral Murder:  U.S. military helicopter slays Reuters  photojournalist.

Callous brutality or the injustices of war?







SEE ALSO:

* Collateral Murder Website

* Video Shows U.S. Killing of Reuters Employees

* WikiLeaks Defends Release of Video Showing Killing of Journalists in Iraq

* For 2 Grieving Families, Video Reveals Grim Truth

* Iraq Video Brings Notice to a Web Site

Congrats to 'News & Documentary' Emmy Nominees

Congratulations to all nominees for the 30th annual Emmy awards in the "News & Documentary" category, which includes a number of online videos that we are proud to have showcased on KobreGuide :

Outstanding Informational Programming -- Long Form

* Growing Up Online (Frontline)

New Approaches to News & Documentary Programming -- Current News Coverage

* Bearing Witness: Five Years of the Iraq War (Reuters/MediaStorm)

* Choosing a President (New York Times)

* The Healing Fields (Washington Post)

New Approaches to News & Documentary Programming -- Documentaries

* The Boys of Christ Child House (Detroit Free Press/ Freep.com)

* Intended Consequences (MediaStorm)

We're always pleased when judges of major awards select video stories that we've chosen to champion and share with viewers long before they were awards contenders.

Naturally it makes us wonder which stories we pick this week might be vying for prestigious awards next year -- and are pleased to be able to present them to you now, so that when they get tapped for glory, you can say you saw them when.

And, yes, we're still tickled by the fact that the Television Academy is bestowing awards on videos that have appeared only online. "New Approaches" indeed!

The awards will be presented Sept. 21 in New York. Meanwhile, see previous nominees and winners on KobreGuide's Emmy awards channel.

Lioness ... and Other Remarkable Women

Perhaps you saw the full-length documentary "Lioness" this week on public television. It tells the story of a group of female Army support soldiers who unintentionally became the first women in American history to be sent into direct ground combat. Without sufficient training, these young women ended up fighting in some of the bloodiest counterinsurgency battles of the Iraq war. Their candid narratives describing their experiences in Iraq and scenes from their lives back home form a portrait of the emotional and psychological effects of war from a female point of view.

The directors of "Lioness" produced a video op-ed piece for The New York Times, arguing that it's time for U.S. legislators to acknowledge female warriors and properly train and equip them for battle.

Look for it here on KobreGuide:

LIONESS: WOMEN IN COMBAT
There's a disconnect between what U.S. policy says female soldiers can do and the fighting they are actually doing, so they're not getting the training they need.

Other KobreGuide video reports on remarkable women this week:

ALEXANDRA MORTON's SALMON FIGHT
In northern British Columbia, a self-trained biologist is battling fish farms in hopes of saving the orca whale population.

MAYA LIN's 'WAVE FIELD'
The artist found fame at 21 by designing the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C. Look at what she is creating now.