Pulitzer Prize

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Image:Gen pulitzer.jpg The Pulitzer Prize is an American award regarded as the highest honor in print journalism, literary achievements, and musical compositions. It is administered by Columbia University in New York City.

Prizes are awarded in twenty-one categories. In twenty of these, the winners received a $10,000 cash award and a certificate. The winner in the Public Service category of the Journalism competition was awarded a gold medal; the Public Service prize is always awarded to a newspaper, not an individual, although an individual may be named in the citation.

The prize was established by Joseph Pulitzer, a Hungarian-American journalist and newspaper publisher, who left money to Columbia University upon his death in 1911. Part of the bequest was used to begin the university's journalism school in 1912. The first Pulitzer Prizes were awarded on June 4 1917, and they are now announced each April. Recipients of the award are chosen by an independent board.

A term that is frequently misused is Pulitzer nominee. Many authors and journalists claim to be nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, when in fact they are merely unsuccessful entrants. According to the Pulitzer Web site, only the nominated finalists chosen by Pulitzer juries, usually three per category, are entitled to be called Pulitzer nominees or finalists.

Awards are given out in categories relating to journalism, arts, and letters. Only published reports and photographs by United States-based newspapers or daily news organizations are eligible for the journalism prize.

These are the Pulitzer Prize category definitions in the 2006 competition, in the order they are awarded:

Public Service — for a distinguished example of meritorious public service by a newspaper through the use of its journalistic resources, which may include editorials, cartoons, and photographs, as well as reporting. Often thought of as the grand prize, the Public Service award is given to the newspaper, not to individuals.
Breaking News Reporting — for a distinguished example of local reporting of breaking news.
Investigative Reporting — for a distinguished example of investigative reporting by an individual or team, presented as a single article or series.
Explanatory Reporting — for a distinguished example of explanatory reporting that illuminates a significant and complex subject, demonstrating mastery of the subject, lucid writing, and clear presentation.
Beat Reporting — for a distinguished example of beat reporting characterized by sustained and knowledgeable coverage of a particular subject or activity.
National Reporting — for a distinguished example of reporting on national affairs.
International Reporting — for a distinguished example of reporting on international affairs, including United Nations correspondence.
Feature Writing — for a distinguished example of feature writing giving prime consideration to high literary quality and originality.
Commentary — for distinguished commentary.
Criticism — for distinguished criticism.
Editorial Writing — for distinguished editorial writing, the test of excellence being clarity of style, moral purpose, sound reasoning, and power to influence public opinion in what the writer conceives to be the right direction.
Editorial Cartooning — for a distinguished cartoon or portfolio of cartoons published during the year, characterized by originality, editorial effectiveness, quality of drawing, and pictorial effect.
Breaking News Photography/Spot News Photography — for a distinguished example of breaking news photography in black and white or color, which may consist of a photograph or photographs, a sequence, or an album.
Feature Photography — for a distinguished example of feature photography in black and white or color, which may consist of a photograph or photographs, a sequence, or an album.

There are six categories in letters and drama:

Fiction — for distinguished fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life.
Pulitzer Prize for Drama — for a distinguished play by an American author, preferably original in its source and dealing with American life.
History — for a distinguished book on the history of the United States.
Biography or Autobiography — for a distinguished biography or autobiography by an American author.
Poetry — for a distinguished volume of original verse by an American author.
General Non-Fiction — for a distinguished book of non-fiction by an American author that is not eligible for consideration in any other category.

And there is one prize given for music:

Pulitzer Prize for Music — for a distinguished musical contribution by an American that had its first performance or recording in the United States during the year.

There have also been a number of Special Citations and Awards.

In addition to the prizes, Pulitzer travelling fellowships are awarded to four outstanding students of the Graduate School of Journalism as selected by the faculty.

1 Discontinued awards
2 Winners
3 The Pulitzer Prize and popular culture
4 External links

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Discontinued awards

Over the years, awards have been discontinued either because they have been expanded or renamed. They include:

Pulitzer Prize for Correspondence.
Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Journalism, became the Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting.
Pulitzer Prize for General News Reporting, 1985-1990, became the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting.
Pulitzer Prize for Local General or Spot News Reporting, 1964-1984, became the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting.
Pulitzer Prize for Local Investigative Specialized Reporting, 1964-1984, became the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting.
Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting.
Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting, Edition Time, 1953-1963, became the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting.
Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting, No Edition Time, 1953-1963, became the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting.
Pulitzer Prize for Photography, was divided in 1968 into Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography and a spot news category, which became the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography.
Pulitzer Prize for Spot News Reporting, 1991-1997, became the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting.
Pulitzer Prize for Telegraphic Reporting - International, became the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting.
Pulitzer Prize for Telegraphic Reporting - National, became the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting.
Pulitzer Prize for the Novel, became the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

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Winners

Pulitzer Prize

2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 - 1999 - 1998 - 1997 - 1996 - 1995 - 1994 - 1993 - 1992 - 1991 - 1990 - 1989 - 1988 - 1987 - 1986 - 1985 - 1984 - 1983 - 1982 - 1981 - 1980 - 1979 - 1978 - 1977 - 1976 - 1975 - 1974 - 1973 - 1972 - 1971 - 1970 - 1969 - 1968 - 1967 - 1966 - 1965 - 1964 - 1963 - 1962 - 1961 - 1960 - 1959 - 1958 - 1957 - 1956 - 1955 - 1954 - 1953 - 1952 - 1951 - 1950 - 1949 - 1948 - 1947 - 1946 - 1945 - 1944 - 1943 - 1942 - 1941 - 1940 - 1939 - 1938 - 1937 - 1936 - 1935 - 1934 - 1933 - 1932 - 1931 - 1930 - 1929 - 1928 - 1927 - 1926 - 1925 - 1924 - 1923 - 1922 - 1921 - 1920 - 1919 - 1918 - 1917

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The Pulitzer Prize and popular culture

In the LucasArts graphical adventure game Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders (1988), a journalist named Zack McCracken tries to win the Pulitzer Prize.
In the ABC soap opera All My Children the character Edmund Grey (John Callahan) was a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist.
Homer Simpson won the Pulitzer for publishing a gossip internet page in "The Computer Wore Menace Shoes", an episode of The Simpsons.
In the short-lived series The Critic (and also revealed on The Simpsons), Jay Sherman spends the latter part of an episode seeking a second Pulitzer Prize.
In the DC Comics universe, Clark Kent, Lois Lane, and Perry White have been described as Pulitzer Prize winners.
In the TV show The West Wing, reporter Danny Concannon is a Pulitzer Prize winner, although the character C.J. Cregg repeatedly mispronounces "Pulitzer."