Multimedia Journalism Awards
AAPI Excellence: Soldiering On
Jayna Omaye, Aaron K. Yoshino, Janelle Kalawe-Ching, and Katie Kenny | HONOLULU Magazine
ABOUT THE PROJECT: HONOLULU Magazine's feature, Soldiering On, was a true passion project for the HONOLULU Team. Writer Jayna Omaye and photographer Aaron K. Yoshino are both the grandchildren of men who served in these storied Japanese-American units. Jayna spent more than six months reaching out to Nisei soldiers and their families to find out about their lives after World War II, and she and Aaron spent months capturing them in these photographs and audio clips that were thoughtfully laid out by HONOLULU art director Janelle Kalawe-Ching and placed into the interactive web section by Katie Kenny.
JUDGES’ REMARKS: I applaud HONOLULU Magazine for taking on such a task. Documenting 17 veterans' stories is a monumental task. Extremely well done, and I wish journalists did more stories like these, in this form with the portrait photography and short vignettes.
The behind-the-scenes video was brilliant in showing the personal connection the reporter and photographer had to the story. That gave an extra weight to the stories they were telling.
WWII is a critical time in the AAPI experience in America, and I'm so glad HONOLULU Magazine took the time and care to tell these veterans' stories.
Jayna Omaye joined HONOLULU Magazine as a staff writer after working as a newspaper reporter in Hawai‘i and Orlando.
Born and raised on O‘ahu, she earned her master’s degree from Northwestern University and her bachelor’s degree from the University of Oregon, both in journalism.
Jayna grew up writing and dancing hula, and spent most of her adult life traveling and exploring the Mainland and abroad. She is happy to be home working as a journalist.
General Excellence: Hong Kong on Edge
Shelly Banjo, Blake Schmidt, Iaian Marlow, Natalie Lung, Chloe Whiteaker, Alfred Liu, Annie Lee, Adrian Leung, Hannah Dormido, Demetrios Pogkas, Kiuyan Wong, Stephen Engle, Sebastian Chau, Kelly Belknap, Anna Luk, and Matt Soto | Bloomberg
ABOUT THE PROJECT: Bloomberg’s team of political, tech and financial reporters follow the unrest that erupted in Hong Kong. From the protests, to the influence of money and property tycoons, to even entertaining the possibility of the city’s fall, the coverage culminates in a Bloomberg Television Special Report that explores the factors that fueled the city’s ongoing turmoil.
JUDGES’ REMARKS: Thorough, excellent use of storytelling mediums and supremely compelling. A true deep dive into what's going on in Hong Kong.
Shelly Banjo is a senior reporter based in New York. She writes about technology, with a focus on how tech, finance and politics intersect across the U.S. and China. She is currently working on a serial podcast about the rise of the Chinese-owned music video app TikTok and appears regularly on Bloomberg Television and Radio. Shelly also writes weekly for Bloomberg Technology's newsletter Fully Charged and sits on Bloomberg's Diversity Task force, where she contributes to Bloomberg's gender, race and inequality coverage. She is also a member of Bloomberg’s Reporter Advisory Board in the Americas.