The Selden Ring Award for Investigative Reporting
Now more than ever, rigorous, ethical and technically skilled journalists are needed to hold those in power accountable and tell stories that matter.
The impact of their work strengthens our democratic society — and demonstrates the value of accountability for governments, non-government organizations and private corporations.
Since 1989, the Ring Foundation has partnered with the USC Annenberg School of Journalism to present the Selden Ring Award for Investigative Reporting. The $50,000 annual award — the largest journalism prize in America — was established with the support of Southern California businessman and philanthropist Selden Ring. It highlights the impact investigative journalists have on local, national and global communities.
Information on Selden Ring
Since 1989, the Ring Foundation has partnered with USC Annenberg as the home of the Selden Ring Award for Investigative Reporting. The $50,000 annual award, established with the support of Southern California businessman and philanthropist Selden Ring, has highlighted the impact investigative journalists have on local, national and global communities. The award underscores the importance of investigative journalism as a cornerstone of democratic society — and the value of accountability for governments, non-government organizations and private corporations.
“Now more than ever, we need intellectually rigorous, highly ethical, technically skilled journalists who will hold those in power accountable and tell stories that matter. The Ring Foundation is pleased to further its support for the importance of investigative journalism and serving a vital and fundamental commitment to our values in this country and the world at large,” said Cindy Miscikowski, chair of The Ring Foundation.
The Selden Ring Award underscores the critical importance of investigative journalism in today’s society. The $50,000 prize recognizes published investigative reporting that has brought results. Full-time or freelance reporters working for a United States news organization are eligible for the Selden Ring Award. For audio or video entries, include transcripts. Editors, publishers, educators, journalism organizations and others may make nominations.
The award will be presented at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism in the spring semester, and the winner will be expected to visit the school and participate in classes and a forum on investigative journalism. The winner will be asked to discuss the reporting, the challenges and obstacles in the investigation, how they were overcome and the results of the investigation.
All entries become the property of the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. Winners and finalists grant the school the right to republish the articles and related materials to promote investigative journalism.
The deadline for entries is January 17, 2025.
According to the Tax Reform Act of 1986, the recipient may:
- Receive all of the award proceeds
- Designate one or more charitable institutions appropriately qualified by the Internal Revenue Service to receive the proceeds
- A combination of the above.
- Any funds retained by the individual recipient will be subject to federal income tax.
2024 Selden Ring Winner
After five years of research, UC Berkeley alumni Katey Rusch and Casey Smith found that hundreds of local law enforcement agencies throughout California had systematically used so-called “clean-record agreements” with officers accused of misconduct.
Together with Berkeley Journalism’s Investigative Reporting Program and the San Francisco Chronicle, Rusch and Smith published their findings in “Right to Remain Secret,” revealing that 163 law enforcement agencies in California had entered into the secret deals with nearly 300 officers and 108 of them had landed subsequent jobs at other police departments, as corrections officers or as security guards.
For their reporting, Rusch and Smith have earned the 2025 Selden Ring Award for Investigative Reporting.
Previous winners
ProPublica team wins 2024 Selden Ring Award for ‘Friends of the Court’
ProPublica journalists exposed the most serious ethical scandal in the modern history of the U.S. Supreme Court revolving around the court’s longest-serving justice.
Reuters team wins 2023 Selden Ring Award for ‘Nightmare in Nigeria’
Reuters reporters Paul Carsten, David Lewis, Reade Levinson and Libby George painstakingly assembled evidence of Nigeria’s years-long, secret mass abortion program, forcing the termination of thousands of pregnancies among women and girls.
