ANNAPOLIS, Md.: Capital Gazette staff members stayed silent and somberly exchanged hugs Monday when the Maryland newspaper won a special Pulitzer Prize citation for its coverage and courage in the face of a massacre in its newsroom.
Before the announcement, newspaper employees gathered in their newsroom to remember the five staffers who were shot and killed last June in one of the deadliest attacks on journalists in US history.
“It’s definitely bittersweet,” said reporter Chase Cook. “Since it’s so connected to something so tragic, there was no euphoric pop-off of excitement.”
The Capital Gazette, based in the Maryland state capital of Annapolis, published on schedule the day after the shooting attack. The man charged in the attack had a longstanding grudge against the newspaper.
Capital Gazette editor Rick Hutzell said the paper had submitted entries in five categories, including a joint entry with The Baltimore Sun for breaking news. Although the Capital Gazette didn’t win in any of the five categories, the Pulitzer board awarded the citation with an extraordinary $100,000 grant to further its journalism.
The Pulitzer board said the citation honors the journalists, staff and editorial board of the newspaper “for their courageous response to the largest killing of journalists in US history in their newsroom” and for an “unflagging commitment to covering the news and serving their community at a time of unspeakable grief.”
Hutzell said he thought the Pulitzer board handled its decision admirably.
“Clearly, there were a lot of mixed feelings,” Hutzell said. “No one wants to win an award for something that kills five of your friends.”
He also said the paper was aware it would be facing stiff competition.
“It’s very difficult when you are reporting in some ways on yourself,” he said. “That’s not what we do. We’re behind the camera, not in front of it.”
Employees John McNamara, Wendi Winters, Rebecca Smith, Gerald Fischman and Rob Hiaasen were killed in the attack last June 28 . The shooting didn’t stop other staffers from covering it and putting out a newspaper the next day, with assistance from colleagues at The Baltimore Sun, which is owned by the same company.
Joshua McKerrow, a photographer for the newspaper, said the staff remained “stone silent” for about a minute after learning about the citation. Capital Gazette reporter Rachael Pacella said the citation provided a “big sense of validation for the staff.”
“It’s been a challenge returning to work,” she said. “It lets you know that the additional stress you’ve endured going back to work has been worth it and appreciated.”
Features reporter Selene San Felice said she had to compose herself in a bathroom before the prizes were announced. She initially wasn’t sure how to react to the special citation.
“At first, I thought that meant they just feel bad for us. And that’s not true, because there are a lot of people you can feel bad for right now. We’ve really earned this,” she said.
Jarrod Ramos, the man charged in the newsroom shooting, had a history of harassing the newspaper’s journalists. He filed a lawsuit against the paper in 2012, alleging he was defamed in an article about his conviction in a criminal harassment case in 2011. The suit was dismissed as groundless.
The rampage last June began with a shotgun blast that shattered the glass entrance to the open newsroom. Journalists crawled under desks and sought other hiding places, describing agonizing minutes of terror as they heard the gunman’s footsteps and repeated blasts of the weapon. County police said they captured Ramos hiding under a desk. Authorities say he did not exchange fire with police.
Ramos’ trial is scheduled to start in November. He pleaded not guilty last year to first-degree murder charges. April 29 is the deadline for attorneys to change his plea to not criminally responsible by reason of insanity.
In October, the National Press Foundation announced that Hutzell won the Benjamin C. Bradlee Editor of the Year Award . The award was established in 1984 to recognize imagination, professional skill, ethics and an ability to motivate staff.
In December, the newspaper’s staff was included by Time magazine among its 2018 Person of the Year honorees.
Attacked newsroom: Pulitzer commemorated with somber silence
Attacked newsroom: Pulitzer commemorated with somber silence
- The Pulitzer board said the citation honors the journalists, staff and editorial board of the newspaper “for their courageous response to the largest killing of journalists in US history
Israel extends foreign media ban law until end of 2027
- Order replaces temporary emergency legislation that allowed authorization of so-called ‘Al Jazeera bill’
- Extension of temporary order empowers Communications Ministry to restrict foreign channels deemed to cause ‘real harm to state security’
LONDON: Israel’s Knesset approved late Monday an extension of the temporary order empowering the Communications Ministry to shut down foreign media outlets, pushing the measure through until Dec. 31, 2027.
The bill, proposed by Likud lawmaker Ariel Kallner, passed its second and third readings by a 22-10 vote, replacing wartime emergency legislation known as the “Al Jazeera Law.”
Under the extended order, the communications minister — with prime ministerial approval and security cabinet or government ratification — can restrict foreign channels deemed to cause “real harm to state security,” even outside states of emergency.
Measures include suspending broadcasts, closing offices, seizing equipment, blocking websites, and directing the defense minister to block satellite signals, including in the West Bank, without disrupting other channels.
Administrative orders last 90 days, with possible extensions. Unlike the temporary measure, the new law does not require court approval to shut down a media outlet.
The move has drawn sharp criticism from human rights and media groups, who warn it entrenches restrictions on Arab and foreign outlets amid a broader erosion of press freedoms.
“Israel is openly waging a battle against media outlets, both local and foreign, that criticize the government’s narrative; that is typical behavior of authoritarian regimes,” International Federation of Journalists General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said in November after the bill’s first reading.
“We are deeply concerned about the Israeli parliament passing this controversial bill, as it would be a serious blow to free speech and media freedom, and a direct attack on the public’s right to know.”
In a parallel development, the Israeli Cabinet unanimously approved on Monday the shutdown of Army Radio (Galei Tzahal) after 75 years, with operations ceasing on March 1, 2026.
In a statement, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara warned the decision “undermines public broadcasting in Israel and restricts freedom of expression,” lacking a legal basis.
