Sacramento Bee journalists recognized for excellence in 2020 reporting
Several Sacramento Bee journalists recently earned top honors for their work covering the community in 2020.
During the Sacramento Press Club’s first-ever award ceremony earlier this month, meant to honor the work of journalists in California’s capital, Bee photographer Daniel Kim and Capitol Bureau reporter Kim Bojórquez were selected as winners by a panel of judges.
Kim won in the photography category for a photo of demonstrators flanked by law enforcement at the Capitol in May 2020, where they had gathered to protest Gov. Gavin Newsom’s stay-at-home orders. Another of Kim’s photos was nominated in the same category, depicting Newsom peeking over at his wife’s ballot while voting on March 3, 2020.
Bojórquez, who is part of The Bee’s continuing partnership with Report for America, won in the Spanish-language journalism category for two stories, both of which were written in the lead-up to the 2020 general election in November. In the first, Bojórquez spoke with California Latinos who planned on voting for then-President Donald Trump. The next piece examined the primary concerns of young Latinos eager to cast their ballots for the first time.
Bee sports writer Joe Davidson was also honored this month by the California Interscholastic Federation for his 37 years of high school sports coverage. He won the statewide distinguished service award for his work reporting on local prep sports in the Sac-Joaquin Section.
Four other Bee journalists were nominated by the Sacramento Press Club as finalists amid a field packed with talent. Gil Duran, opinion editor for The Bee and McClatchy’s four other California outlets, was a finalist for best commentary. The award went to Erika D. Smith, a Los Angeles Times columnist and a Bee alumna. The Bee’s environment reporter Ryan Sabalow was a finalist for best environmental reporting for his expansive five-series, ‘Nothing Wild.’ In it, Sabalow investigated a range of ecological crises affecting Northern California’s wildlife.
Sophia Bollag of The Bee’s Capitol Bureau, was also named a finalist for best daily Capitol beat reporting. Bee data reporter Phillip Reese was a finalist for best public health reporting for a piece he wrote for California Healthline that looked at disproportionate coronavirus infection rates in poorer neighborhoods.
The Press Club also honored CalMatters reporter Laurel Rosenhall, another former Bee reporter, as Journalist of the Year.
This story was originally published April 24, 2021 at 3:27 PM.