L.A. Times Earns 2024 Scripps Howard Journalism Award for Opinion Writing

The Los Angeles Times has won a Scripps Howard Journalism Award in the organization’s 71st annual competition. Presented by the Scripps Howard Fund, the awards recognize journalism that spurs action, news organizations that go the extra mile to expose previously undisclosed or misunderstood information, and journalists who embrace new tools and approaches to provide more immersive experiences for their audiences. The awards were presented on Oct. 20 during a special program on Scripps News.

Times columnist Anita Chabria earned the Excellence in Opinion Writing award for her series of columns, “Inside Out: Normalizing Incarceration to Increase Public Safety,” which examined how corrections officers, inmates, victims and communities are affected by the Scandinavian rehabilitation approach, which focuses on normalizing prison life so that inmates have the opportunity to learn and make better choices without being preoccupied by fear or violence.

Chabria, who has written about crime, justice and incarceration for many years, got the idea for the series after hearing that California Gov. Gavin Newsom was interested in transforming the infamous San Quentin prison using ideas from the Scandinavian model of incarceration, so she set out to learn more. Her research led her “down a rabbit hole,” which took her to the “Little Scandinavia” unit at the Pennsylvania State Correctional Institution, an experiment modeled after Northern European systems of incarceration; and to Norway, where high-security prisons permit inmates to choose their own clothing and buy fresh produce from a well-stocked grocery store, while guards play the role of part-time social workers.

“One of the most interesting aspects of these stories was the corrections officers’ position that they are in favor of change,” said Chabria, who noted that the California Correctional Peace Officers Assn., the union that represents guards, supports the Scandinavian model. “The union is focused on the mental health of its members, and the current system of incarceration leads to all kinds of problems for officers, from substance abuse to suicide,” she said. “So they are invested in changing incarceration models to help create a better career for members, by creating better experiences and outcomes for incarcerated people. It was an angle I didn’t expect when I started.”

Following Chabria’s first column on the topic, the California Legislature agreed to fund Newsom’s plan to transform San Quentin State Prison from a maximum-security prison into a rehabilitation and education facility. But Chabria said the push to change incarceration in California has been stalled by the state’s current budget situation. “San Quentin has closed death row and moved condemned prisoners to facilities across the state,” she noted, and that space will be used as part of changing San Quentin to this new model. “But really, much of this will be in the hands of our next governor,” she added. “And whomever he or she is, we’ll be watching to see what they do.”

To learn more about her columns, watch the video from the awards presentation featuring Chabria’s winning entry.

Additionally, The Times was named a finalist for Excellence in Breaking News for its coverage of the mass shooting in Monterey Park. “Twenty reporters at the Los Angeles Times documented the horrific toll of the shooting, spotlighted the resiliency of the immigrant community there and chronicled its recovery,” noted the award entry.

To learn learn more about the Scripps Howard Journalism Awards and see the complete list of winners, visit scripps.com.