THE PULITZER PRIZE

To win any type of award or prize is a special thing in one’s life but we fail to understand the true meaning behind the many prizes given away in American society.  If one were to win the Pulitzer Prize, they would feel a sense of accomplishment, but where exactly did this prize originate?  The answer is from Joseph Pulitzer, the 19^th century American journalist, also considered to be one of the most skillful newspaper publishers.  The Pulitzer Prize has been awarded since 1917, in honor of Joseph Pulitzer, as a United States award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature, and musical composition.  Prizes are awarded yearly in twenty-one categories, twenty of these winners receiving a certificate and a $10,000 cash award.  The winner in the public service category of the journalism competition is awarded a gold metal.  Provision for the establishment of the Pulitzer Prizes came from his 1904 will and upon his death in 1911, he left money to Columbia University to administer these prizes yearly.  Winners of all prizes are chosen by an independent board to ensure fairness to all possible contestants.  For further information on the history of the prize’s origination and the award process go to: http://www.cartage.org.lb/en/themes/GeogHist/histories/prizewinners/pulitzer/hisofprizes.htm

One of the Pulitzer Prizes includes a prize for Fiction created stories or novels.  In definition, this prize is for distinguished fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life - the award winner is granted ten thousand dollars.  In 2010, the Pulitzer Prize Winner of Fiction was Paul Harding for his self-created book “Tinkers”.  Paul Harding’s novel “Tinkers” is about an old man who lies dying.  As time collapses into memory, he travels deep into his past where he is reunited with his father and relives the wonder and pain of his impoverished New England youth.  This is a powerful celebration of life in which this father and son, through suffering and joy, transcend their imprisoning lives and offer new ways of perceiving the world and mortality.  Paul Harding has taught writing at Harvard University and the University of Iowa, a very educated man.  As previously stated, an independent board chooses all winners of prizes.  This particular board included Rebecca Pepper Sinkler, a former editor and the New York Times Book Review chair, Charles Johnson, a professor at the University of Washington, and Laura Miller, a senior writer.  

Another portion of the Pulitzer Prize is Breaking News Photography.  By definition, this prize is rewarded 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, in print or online or both.  The winner of this prize is rewarded ten thousand dollars.  In 2010, the Breaking News Photography Prize was awarded to Mary Chind of the Des Moines Register for her photograph of the heart-stopping moment when a rescuer dangling in a makeshift harness trying to save a women trapped in the foaming water beneath a dam.  Mary Chind has been a staff photographer at The Des Moines Register since 1999.  Chind graduated from the University of Wisconsin and previous to her current occupation, worked for two newspapers in the state of Arizona: The Sierra Vista Herald and The Tucson Citizen.  Her jury included Sherman Williams, an assistant managing editor of visual journalism for Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Nancy Andrews, a managing editor of the digital media for Detroit Free Press, Nanya Friend, an editor and publisher of Charleston (WV) Daily Mail, Richard Murphy, a photo director of Anchorage Daily News, and Steve Gonzales, a directory of photography for Houston Chronicle. 

There are many categories of the Pulitzer Prize other then Fiction and Breaking News Photography, and many winners and finalists in the past for each of these categories.  To see past winners and finalists by category, visit http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat.