Manny García, who led the Austin American-Statesman’s audacious and inclusive coverage of the Uvalde school shooting, has won the Benjamin C. Bradlee Editor of the Year Award from the National Press Foundation.
García accepted the award at the NPF awards dinner Feb. 23, 2023:
The prestigious award is given for imagination, professional skill, ethics and an ability to motivate staff — all qualities that García displayed in his decisions to go above and beyond traditional news coverage to better serve his community as it grappled with the deaths of 19 children and two adults on May 24, 2022.
García had been executive editor only 14 months when the shooting began at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where most residents are Latino.
Under his leadership, the English-language Statesman published the Texas House committee report on the Uvalde school shooting in Spanish as a public service.
The translation was done by a collaboration of Spanish-speaking journalists from the USA Today Network, plus around the country and in Mexico. The Statesman printed 10,000 copies and staffers, including García, distributed them free in Uvalde, at churches, restaurants, the library and other locations.
García also made the controversial decision to publish a 77-minute video of the shooting obtained by reporter Tony Plohetski. The video showed the police delay in entering the school after the gunman began shooting.
“The test of a news leader is how you react to difficult news in your community,” NPF’s judges said. “In a tough year and a not-easy situation, Manny stood up and stood out.”
Judges noted that García, the son of Cuban immigrants, had made a difference in many places, including the Miami Herald, el Nuevo Herald, The Naples Daily News, USA Today and
ProPublica. He has also served journalism through Investigative Reporters and Editors, the News Leaders Association and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
At a time when many newspapers have closed or are beleaguered by financial problems, ownership changes or layoffs, NPF’s judges said they were also energized by a new crop of nonprofit news organizations whose editors are taking creative approaches to engaging, informing and helping underserved communities. These include Sarah Alvarez, founder and editor-in-chief of Outlier Media in Detroit; S. Mitra Kalita, co-founder of the URL Media; and Emily Ramshaw and Amanda Zamora co-founder of The 19th News.
“We see green shoots everywhere and new ways to connect with communities,” the judges said.
García will accept the award at NPF’s annual dinner on Feb. 23, 2023.
Last year’s winner of the Benjamin C. Bradlee Award was Dean Baquet, former executive editor of The New York Times. Previous winners include Peter Bhatia of the Detroit Free Press; Aminda (Mindy) Marqués Gonzalez, former editor of the Miami Herald; and Rick Hutzell, former editor of the (Maryland) Capital Gazette.
