The 2026 Pulitzer Prizes recognized some of the most compelling journalistic and creative work of the past year, honoring leading news organizations, writers, playwrights and musicians across categories including public service, investigative reporting, fiction, history and music.
The awards highlighted the work of major US media outlets including The Washington Post, Reuters, The New York Times and the San Francisco Chronicle, while also celebrating achievements in literature and the arts.
The award for public service goes to the Washington Post
The prestigious award for public service was awarded to The Washington Post. Finalists in this category included The Wall Street Journal for reporting led by Khadeeja Safdar and Joe Palazzolo, as well as the Chicago Tribune.
In Breaking News Reporting, The Minnesota Star Tribune staff received awards. Finalists included teams from The Wall Street Journal, Southern California News Group and The Seattle Times.
Investigative and explanatory reporting appreciated
The award for Investigative Reporting was won by the staff of The New York Times. Finalists included Debbie Cenziper, Megan Rose and Brandon Roberts of ProPublica, along with Cynthia Dizikes and Joaquin Palomino of the San Francisco Chronicle.
The Explanatory Reporting Award went to Susie Neilson, Megan Fan Munce and Sara DiNatale of the San Francisco Chronicle. The finalists included reporters from ProPublica and Bloomberg staff.
Reuters and AP secured the top news wins
Reuters has secured two major journalism awards. The Beat Reporting award went to Jeff Horwitz and Engen Tham, while the National Reporting award went to Reuters staff including Ned Parker, Linda So, Peter Eisler and Mike Spector.
In the International Reporting category, Associated Press journalists — Dake Kang, Garance Burke, Byron Tau, Aniruddha Ghosal and contributor Yael Grauer won.
Local news and commentary appreciated
Two prizes were awarded in Local Reporting. Winners included The Connecticut Mirror’s Dave Altimari and Ginny Monk, along with ProPublica’s Sophie Chou and Haru Coryne. The Chicago Tribune staff also received an award after the Pulitzer Board moved them into a category.
In Opinion Writing, he won the M. Gessen Award from The New York Times. Mark Lamster of The Dallas Morning News received the Criticism Award.
Photo and audio news winners
Breaking News Photography went to Saher Alghorra, a contributor to The New York Times, while Jahi Chikwendiu of The Washington Post won Feature Photography.
The Audio Reporting category was won by Pablo Torre Finds Out staff.
The announcement of the winners of fiction, history and music
In the categories of Books, Drama and Music, he won the prize for the fiction Angel Down by Daniel Kraus and for the Drama Liberation by Bess Wohl.
Historian Jill Lepore received the History Award for We the People: A History of the US Constitution. Amanda Vaill’s Pride and Pleasure: The Schuyler Sisters in an Age of Revolution won the biography award.
Yiyun Li won Memoir or Autobiography for Merely Grow’s Things in Nature, while the Poetry prize went to Juliana Spahr’s Ars Poeticas.
Brian Goldstone presented the General Nonfiction Award to There Is No Place for Us: Working and Homeless in America. In music, Picaflor: A Future Myth by Gabriela Lena Franková won the highest award.
A special quote
The Pulitzer Council also awarded a special citation to journalist Julia K. Brown in recognition of her contributions to journalism.
What are the Pulitzer Prizes and who receives them?
The Pulitzer Prizes were established in 1917 by the will of newspaper publisher Joseph Pulitzer and are administered by Columbia University in New York.
The awards are presented annually to journalists, newspapers, authors, playwrights, poets, historians, photographers and composers for outstanding work produced during the previous year.
In journalism, the Pulitzer Prizes recognize reporting in categories such as public service, investigative reporting, breaking news, international reporting, feature writing, commentary and photography. Major news organizations, independent journalists and digital media outlets are eligible.
The awards also recognize achievements in books, drama and music. Categories include Fiction, History, Biography, Monograph, Poetry, General Nonfiction, Drama, and Musical Composition.
Pulitzer Prize winners are selected based on recommendations by independent juries made up of editors, writers, academics and experts.
The Public Service category is considered journalism’s highest honor and is awarded to a news organization for work that serves the public interest. Winners in this category will receive a gold medal, while winners in other categories will receive a cash prize and a certificate.
Over the decades, the Pulitzer Prizes have become a global symbol of excellence in journalism and the arts.
