Freedom of the Press Foundation’s new award honors exceptional, non-paywalled public records-based investigative reporting with a $25,000 prize.

“The submission must be substantially based on documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act or other public records laws.

“We will consider written news articles published online by an established journalism organization on or after Sept. 1, 2025. Videos, podcasts, graphics, and other multimedia content that are included within a written article are acceptable.”