Pulitzers honour damning coverage of Trump and his policies

The annual awards overseen by Columbia University recognised coverage of Trump’s immigration crackdown and his enrichment of his allies

Coverage of the Trump administration dominated the Pulitzer Prizes announced on Monday as the prize committee unleashed a searing attack on US President Donald Trump’s attempts to limit freedom of reporting.

“We stand for civil discourse and against censorship,” said Pulitzer Administrator Marjorie Miller ahead of the announcements, which honoured coverage of Trump’s immigration crackdown and his enrichment of his allies.

“Unfortunately, this bears repeating now, as media access to the White House and Pentagon is restricted, free speech is challenged in the streets, and the President of the United States has filed lawsuits for billions of dollars for defamation and malice against multiple print and broadcast media.”

The prestigious Pulitzer Prize for public service journalism was awarded to the Washington Post for its in-depth coverage of Trump’s “chaotic” efforts to reconstruct the US federal bureaucracy.

“In rich detail” the coverage explored “the human impacts of the cuts and the consequences for the country,” Miller said.

The investigative reporting prize went to The New York Times for its series exposing how Trump “exploited the money-making opportunities that come with power, enriching his family and allies”.