L.A. Times Wins Excellence in Newswriting Award from NLGJA

The Los Angeles Times has won a 2024 Excellence in Journalism Award from the NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists. The awards, which recognize and reward excellence in journalism on issues related to the LGBTQ+ community, were announced on July 23.

Times staff writers Kevin Rector, Howard Blume and Mackenzie Mays earned the excellence in newswriting award for their report, How conservatives are waging a coordinated, anti-LGBTQ+ culture war in California schools. The reporting focused on conservative and anti-LGBTQ+ activists who have been unable to change policy at a state level, so instead are tapping into political power by focusing on local school boards, raising money to fund candidates who share their views on transgender issues and parental notification.

Adam Pawlus, executive director of NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists, said in a news release that it is vital that journalists cover “the coordinated and systematic assault on the rights of LGBTQ+ Americans.” He added, “This year, we’ve recognized pieces that reveal the spread of this campaign, like a Los Angeles Times article exposing the anti-LGBTQ+ crusade sweeping through California school boards and a Reuters investigation into the rise of anti-trans bills across the country.”

To learn more about the NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists and see the full list of award recipients, visit nlgja.org.