1991 duPont-Columbia Award Winners
In a special program, the duPont-Columbia University Awards announced 1 Gold Baton recipient and 12 additional winners.
GOLD BATON - Frontline, WGBH-TV & Martin Smith Productions for “Inside Gorbachev's USSR”
This series of four one-hour documentaries is a monumental undertaking that distills the extraordinary expertise of one reporter, Hedrick Smith, on a story he could not have covered with cameras before Glasnost. Smith, who was the The New York Times Moscow Bureau Chief in the early 1970’s and is the author of two authoritative books on the Soviet Union, drew on old contacts and new conflicts between innovators and the old bureaucracy to explain the changes occurring in the Soviet Union. With a team of producers and Soviet experts, Smith provides a richly textured portrait of Soviet citizens coping with the dilemmas of their time.
Peter Jennings Reporting: From the Killing Fields - ABC News
This one-hour investigative report details the return of the Khmer Rouge rebels, a murderous anti-Communist force to Cambodia.
Eyes on the Prize II: America at the Racial Crossroads - Blackside, Inc.
This series of eight one-hour documentaries completes the epic recounting of the Civil Rights movement in the United States from 1954 to 1985.
Evening News with Dan Rather - CBS News
Nine feature segments for the "Evening News" reveal powerful human stories behind the news of the fall of Communist governments.
Near Death - Exit Films
This six-hour chronicle about terminal patients and those around them at Boston’s Beth Israel Hospital is illuminating, elevating and unforgettable.
Horizons: And Justice for All - NPR
This half-hour radio documentary on the plight of poor tenants facing evictions in New York City's housing court is radio reporting at its best. Helen Borten captures the stories of tenants caught in bureaucracy without the guarantee of legal representation. With touching interviews and vivid narration, Borten explains how the mistakes of bureaucracy and the tactics of landlords can contribute to homelessness, even when the tenants have paid the rent.
If you have recordings of this coverage, please contact the duPont-Columbia Awards.
Coverage of California Earthquake - KCBS-AM
This all-news radio station provided outstanding reporting and public service broadcasting in the face of a devastating emergency. For 84 hours of continuous coverage without commercials, the anchors and field reporters showed restraint, resourcefulness d compassion in their reporting. The station continued to cover the story for many months with several special reports and a continuing series on the most devastated areas. KCBS-AM, San Francisco, California. Coverage of earthquake in San Francisco and several follow-up reports.
If you have footage of this coverage, please contact the duPont-Columbia Awards.
Critical Choices: America's Health Care Crisis - KING-TV
In this exceptionally thorough and clear comparison of the Canadian and American health care systems, KING succeeds in showing why high technology and private insurance make the cost and access to medical care impossible for many Americans.
Express: Shield for Abuse - KQED-TV
This half-hour broadcast investigates a pattern of police brutality in San Francisco over a 10-year period. With excellent street reporting and a detailed examination of more than 300 lawsuits against the police, the broadcast reveals that San Francisco’s Police Department rarely disciplined its officers for using excessive force, and paid out millions of dollars in damage claims besides.
Who Killed Vincent Chin? - P.O.V. & WTVS-TV
This 90-minute documentary reconstructs the incidents surrounding the death of a young Chinese engineering student who was clubbed to death with a baseball bat by a white auto worker.
Coverage of Hurricane Hugo - WCBD-TV
When Hurricane Hugo headed toward the coast of South Carolina in September, 1989, WCBD-TV made an extraordinary effort to cover all facets of the situation.
NFL Drug Testing: Illegal Procedure -WJLA-TV
In nine reports that began two days before the Super Bowl las, Roberta Baskin details faulty laboratory practices and discriminatory enforcement policy by the NFL’s chief drug adviser.
Dick Feagler for Nightly Commentaries - WKYC-TV
Dick Feagler practices the all but extinct art of regular commentary on a local station with incisive and witty personal essays on local, national and international issues.