Open AccessTales of quakes and consequences garner 2012 AGU journalism awards
Author(s) -
Weiss Peter
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
eos, transactions american geophysical union
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.316
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 2324-9250
pISSN - 0096-3941
DOI - 10.1029/2012eo460003
Subject(s) - verdict , excellence , journalism , wrongdoing , political science , law , history , media studies , sociology
When a court last month convicted seismologists of wrongdoing for how they characterized earthquake risk in the weeks preceding a deadly 2009 temblor in the city of L'Aquila, Italy, the verdict shocked scientists around the world. More than a year before that judgment came down, freelance reporter Stephen S. Hall had explored the legal case and its implications for scientists and for society in an article published in the 15 September 2011 issue of Nature . Because of the deep and compelling way in which Hall reported on the case, AGU in July chose Hall as the 2012 winner of the Walter Sullivan Award for Excellence in Science Journalism ‐ Features. Remarkable coverage of an earthquake also stood out for judges of the other of this year's AGU journalism honors: the 2012 David Perlman Award for Excellence in Journalism ‐ News. Also in July, AGU selected a team at The Washington Post , including two staff writers, Brian Vastag and Steven Mufson, and the Post 's graphics staff, to receive the Perlman Award for their superb reporting on the unusual 5.8 magnitude earthquake that shook the Washington, D. C., region in August 2011.