2017 Investigative Reporting for Broadcast Winner

About the Entry

A nearly two-year investigation by a team of journalists at NBC Bay Area found that schools across the country, including in the San Francisco Bay Area, were more likely to use police to respond to discipline issues when the alleged offenders were black students or students with disabilities.

Comments from the Judges

“This is what I call a data-driven investigation with results. The NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit found some great anecdotes to show how schools were misusing police officers to discipline students, a policy that leaves children with criminal records for what some describe as just ‘childish misbehavior.’”

“These type of investigations are not easy and they are time-consuming. … In this case, the team spent two years chronicling this disturbing trend. The digital portion of the project is what I consider a public service that allows the audience to search their communities.”