The Appeal’s Incarcerated Journalists Win Big in Stillwater Awards

The Appeal is proud to announce that several incarcerated writers won in the first annual SPJ-PJP Stillwater Prison Journalism Awards.

The Appeal’s Contributing Editor Christopher Blackwell won Prison Journalist of the Year. Blackwell produces powerful and thought-provoking writing—often blending the personal with the reported.

His nominated works included his reporting for The Appeal on Washington’s practice of sentencing enhancements for juvenile offenses that propelled extreme sentencing. This stirred support for HB 1324, which repealed the practice. It was later signed into law by Governor Jay Inslee in a ceremony attended by Christopher’s wife. His beautiful and poignant essay for The Appeal on bird watching in prison was also submitted.

“The mere fact that Christopher Blackwell has been published in so many places (including The New York Times) and on so many topics (ranging from prison labor to the effects of climate change on the prison system) might overshadow how he writes and reports these stories,” the judges said. “ Whether first-person or third, Blackwell’s style shines through.”

C. Dreams won Best News Story for her reporting for The Appeal on Georgia’s Department of Corrections forcing people to choose between early prison release to a halfway house or their long-term medical care.

“The best news stories combine official statistics with human beings who are affected by those stats. That happens here to great effect,” said judges. “This is a textbook example of a news story done well.”

Blackwell’s reporting on a Washington prison mishandling court mail came third place for Best News Story and his story on sentencing enhancement was runner-up for Most Impactful Journalism.