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AP wins Pulitzer for immigration photography; is finalist for education reporting 

Migrants sit under a sign marking the Panama-Colombia border during their trek across the Darien Gap, Tuesday, May 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)

A Migration to the United States

The Associated Press was honored Monday for its photojournalism and U.S. education reporting, awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography as seen in compelling, multi-country photojournalism showing migration from Central America to the United States, and being named a finalist in national reporting for groundbreaking coverage of students who fell out of normal schooling during the global pandemic.  

Migrants sit under a sign marking the Panama-Colombia border during their trek across the Darien Gap, May 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)

The feature photography achievement is AP’s 59th Pulitzer Prize, including 36 for photography. 

See a slideshow of the winning images.

“These raw and emotional images came about through day-to-day coverage of a historic moment, with AP photographers documenting migrants at every step of their treacherous journeys,” said AP Senior Vice President and Executive Editor Julie Pace. “Simply put, this was AP at its best – leveraging our global footprint and deep expertise to cover a fast-moving story with high impact. We are very pleased that the Pulitzer board has recognized this important photojournalism.”  

AP photographers trekked alongside migrants through the dense, militia-controlled jungles of the Darien Gap on the Colombia-Panama border; they followed authorities detaining families through dangerous terrain, and thousands of people clinging to the tops of trains in Mexico; and they photographed vulnerable people accumulating at the U.S.-Mexico border.  

Like in any crisis zone around the world, photographers captured moments of pain and fear, along with the humanity. 

The feature photography prize is shared by staff photographers Greg Bull, Eric Gay, Fernando Llano, Marco Ugarte and Eduardo Verdugo, and longtime AP freelance photographers Christian Chavez, Felix Marquez and Ivan Valencia. 

AP was a finalist in the national reporting category for its comprehensive analysis showing how many students went missing from school during the pandemic, and a series of stories centered on the children whose futures now hang in the balance. Reporters Bianca Vazquez Toness and Sharon Lurye shined a spotlight on children whose stories would otherwise have gone untold.  

AP last earned the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography in 2021 for a poignant series of photographs showing the impact of the global pandemic on Spain’s elderly. 

In 2023, AP won two Pulitzer Prizes for its Ukraine war coverage: the Gold Medal for Public Service and the Pulitzer for breaking news photography. 

About AP

The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world’s population sees AP journalism every day. Online: www.ap.org

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The Associated Press
212-621-7005
leaston@ap.org

Nicole Meir
Media Relations Manager
The Associated Press
212-621-7536
nmeir@ap.org

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