Announcing the Religion News Association 2025 Excellence in Religion Reporting Award Finalists
Editor’s Note: This updates and replaces a previous version of the 2025 awards finalist announcement
Congratulations to the finalists of 2025’s Religion News Association (RNA) Awards for Religion Reporting Excellence.
Winners of this year's awards — which showcase religion journalism excellence in the news media among 13 categories of print, online, multiple media, broadcast and book entries — were celebrated at the RNA Annual Conference on April 5, 2025, in Arlington, Va.
Excellence in Religion Reporting: Large Daily Newspapers & Wire Services
Marc Ramirez, USA Today
Joshua McElwee, Reuters
Jessica Bateman, Washington Post
Alison Bowen, Chicago Tribune
Ken Oliver-Méndez, Catholic News Agency
Marinella Bandini, Catholic News Agency
Elizabeth Dias, New York Times
Ruth Graham, New York Times
Michelle Boorstein and Laura Meckler, Washington Post
Leora Arnowitz, David Oliver, Krystal Nurse, Laura Beatty, Dana Taylor, USA Today
Nicole Winfield, Associated Press
Tiffany Stanley, Associated Press
Holly Meyer, Associated Press
María Teresa Hernández, Associated Press
Peter Smith, Associated Press
Giovanna Dell'Orto, Associated Press
Deepa Bharath, Associated Press
Luis Andres Henao, Associated Press
Adrian Ashford, The Dallas Morning News
Excellence in Religion Reporting: Small and Mid-Size Daily Newspapers
Deena Yellin, The Record
Sophie Carson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Steve Rabey, The Gazette
Mark Kellner, The Washington Times
Frank Lockwood, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Liam Adams, The Tennessean
Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press
Lauren Costantino, Curtis Morgan, Daniel Varela and Pedro Portal, Miami Herald
Jacob Geanous, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Laura Malt Schneiderman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Peggy Fletcher Stack, The Salt Lake Tribune
Tamarra Kemsley, The Salt Lake Tribune
Debbie Kelley, The Gazette
Judy Thomas, The Kansas City Star
Carla Hinton, The Oklahoman
Tim Steller and Emily Hamer, Arizona Daily Star
Excellence in Religion Reporting: Online-Only News Outlets
Andrea Januta and Natalia Yermak, The Kyiv Independent
Elizabeth Eisenstadt Evans, ReligionUnplugged.com
Elizabeth Eisenstadt Evans, RNS
Sarah Stankorb, Slate
Phoebe Petrovic, Wisconsin Watch/ProPublica
Cassy Benefield, Mia Gallegos and Aaron Hedge, FaVS News
Mia Gallegos,Tracy Simmons and Cassy Benefield, FaVS News
Derrick Clifton, THEM
Marissa Greene, Emily Wolf and Cecilia Lenzen, Fort Worth Report
Steve Rabey, Baptist News Global
Eric Killelea and Matthew Kitchen, Chron
Lauren Markoe, The Forward
Rhina Guidos, Doreen Ajiambo and Chris Herlinger, Global Sisters Report
Louis Keene, The Forward
Fiona Murphy, RNS
Jack Jenkins, RNS
Kathryn Post, RNS
Yonat Shimron, RNS
Rhonda Roumani, RNS
Tess Owen, RNS
Claire Giangravè, RNS
Adelle Banks, RNS
Fiona André, RNS
Bob Smietana, RNS
Bobby Ross Jr., ReligionUnplugged.com
Audrey Jackson, ReligionUnplugged.com
Clemente Lisi, ReligionUnplugged.com
Angela Youngman, ReligionUnplugged.com
Lauren Hakimi and Naftuli Moster, Shtetl
Naftuli Moster, Sophia Lebowitz and Gersh Kuntzman, Shtetl
Religion Story of the Year
Sam Kestenbaum, Harper's Magazine
David Van Biema, outreach.faith
Rosemary Westwood, Jack Jenkins, Daniel Burke, Roxanne Stone and Sarah Ventre, NPR and RNS
Sarah Ventre and Aaron Schachter, The World (PRX/GBH)
Ken Oliver-Méndez, Catholic News Agency
Elizabeth Dias, New York Times
Ruth Graham, New York Times
James Queally, Los Angeles Times
Will Alden, Jewish Currents
Maya Rosen, Jewish Currents
Doreen Ajiambo, Global Sisters Report
Talya Zax, The Forward
Arno Rosenfeld, The Forward
Aleja Hertzler-McCain, RNS
Rhonda Roumani, RNS
Jacob Forman and Zach Touqan, Moment Magazine
Sarah Breger and Sue Fishkoff, Moment Magazine
Nadine Epstein, Moment Magazine
Bobby Ross Jr. and Kenneth Pybus, Christian Chronicle
Luis Andres Henao, Associated Press
Deepa Bharath and Jessie Wardarski, Associated Press
Mariam Fam and Salar Salim, Associated Press
Excellence in Religion News Analysis
Bobby Ross Jr., ReligionUnplugged.com
Kelsey Dallas, Deseret News
Michael Ivan Schwartz, Matthew D. Taylor and John Rivera, Premiere event at the Senator Theatre in Baltimore, Jan. 31, 2024 and on subsequently on YouTube
Matthew D. Taylor, RNS
Rosemary Westwood, Jack Jenkins, Daniel Burke, Roxanne Stone and Sarah Ventre, NPR and RNS
Brian Kaylor, A Public Witness
Elizabeth Dias and Lisa Lerer, New York Times
Heidi Schlumpf, National Catholic Reporter
Francis X. Rocca, National Catholic Register
Sideny Greenfield, A Journey Through NYC Religions
Alan Shore, A Journey Through NYC Religions
Adam Haber, Matylda Figlerowicz, Dennis Hogan and Aparna Gopalan, Jewish Currents
Andrew Silverstein, The Forward
Louis Keene, The Forward
Matthew Taylor and Paul Djupe, RNS
Jonathan Merritt, RNS
Peter Smith, Associated Press
Excellence in Religion Commentary
Bobby Ross Jr., ReligionUnplugged.com
Heather Miller Rubens, National Catholic Reporter
Dave Schechter, Atlanta Jewish Times
Paul Moses, Commonweal Magazine
Dilshad Ali, Interfaith America Magazine
Dilshad Ali, RNS
Jeromiah Taylor, U.S. Catholic Magazine, Today's American Catholic and National Catholic Reporter
Brian Kaylor, A Public Witness
Simran Jeet Singh, Morgan Flannery, Rithu Jagannath, Tommy Bazarian, Jocelyn Gonzales, Serena Chow and Josh Good, Wisdom and Practice
Michael Warsaw, National Catholic Register
Father Raymond J. de Souza, National Catholic Register
Tony Carnes, A Journey Through NYC Religions
Sarah Aziza, Jewish Currents
Maya Rosen, Jewish Currents
Jodi Rudoren, The Forward
Rob Eshman, The Forward
Robert Alter, The Forward
Emily Tamkin, The Forward
Joshua Hammerman, RNS
Karen Prior, RNS
Dwight Wolter, RNS
Thomas Reese, RNS
Jeffrey Salkin, RNS
Mark Silk, RNS
Gillian Frank, The Revealer
Amy E. Schwartz, Moment Magazine
Nadine Epstein, Moment Magazine
Tom Roberts, National Catholic Reporter
Tom Fox, National Catholic Reporter
Walter Hesford, Becky Tallent and Matthew Kincanon, FaVS News
Renner Award for Enterprise & Serials
Courtney Mares, Catholic News Agency
Elizabeth Dias, Lisa Lerer and Abbie VanSickle, New York Times
Ruth Graham, New York Times
Michelle Boorstein and Hannah Knowles, Washington Post
Marshall Weiss, The Dayton Jewish Observer
Rhina Guidos, Dan Stockman, Chris Herlinger, Camillo Barone, Jorge Nieto, Yolanda Morales, Judith Sudilovsky and Lise Alves, Global Sisters Report
Talya Zax, The Forward
Arno Rosenfeld, Lauren Markoe, Jodi Rudoren, Mark Caro, Mira Fox, Sam Lin-Sommer and Andrew Silverstein, The Forward
Aleja Hertzler-McCain and Jack Jenkins, RNS
Dilshad Ali, RNS
Erik Tryggestad, Ted Parks and Bobby Ross Jr., Christian Chronicle
Heidi Schlumpf, National Catholic Reporter
Supple Award for Excellence in Religion Feature Writing
Sam Kestenbaum, Harper's Magazine
Emma Goldberg, New York Times
Marc Tracy, New York Times
David Van Biema, outreach.faith
Ken Chitwood, NewLines Magazine, The Revealer and Sojourners
Karin Price Mueller, NJ.com
Jeromiah Taylor, The Bias Magazine, U.S. Catholic Magazine and National Catholic Reporter
Ken Oliver and Peter Pinedo, Catholic News Agency
Jonah McKeown, Catholic News Agency
Krysyan Edler, Deseret News
Sarah Ventre and Aaron Schachter, The World (PRX/GBH)
Camillo Barone, National Catholic Reporter
Elizabeth Dias, New York Times
Jonathan Liedl, National Catholic Register
Ruth Graham, New York Times
Michelle Boorstein, Washington Post
Tony Carnes, A Journey Through NYC Religions
Marshall Weiss, The Dayton Jewish Observer
Doreen Ajiambo, Global Sisters Report
Chris Herlinger, Global Sisters Report
Doreen Ajiambo and Chris Herlinger, Global Sisters Report
Matthew Litman, The Forward
Beth Harpaz, The Forward
PJ Grisar, The Forward
Kathryn Post, RNS
Yonat Shimron, RNS
Adelle Banks, RNS
Jack Jenkins, Rosemary Westwood, Roxanne Stone, Daniel Burke and Sarah Ventre, RNS
Jack Jenkins, RNS
Claire Giangravé, RNS
Richa Karmarkar, RNS
Sarah Breger and Sue Fishkoff, Moment Magazine
Noah Phillips, Moment Magazine
Jennifer Bardi, Moment Magazine
Bobby Ross Jr., Christian Chronicle
Jessie Wardarski, Associated Press
Tiffany Stanley, Associated Press
David Crary, Associated Press
Aaron Hedge and Tracy Simmons, FaVS News
Excellence in Religion Reporting: Radio
Jason DeRose, Cheryl Corley and Liz Baker, NPR
Walter Ratliff and Luis Andres Henao, Associated Press
Walter Ratliff, Tiffany Stanley and Laura Ungar, Associated Press
Rosemary Westwood, Jack Jenkins, Daniel Burke, Roxanne Stone and Sarah Ventre, NPR and RNS
Sarah Ventre and Daniel Burke, NPR
Excellence in Religion Reporting: Podcast
Joshua McElwee and Christopher White, National Catholic Reporter
Grace Tatter, Paul Vaitkus and Ben Brock Johnson, WBUR
Tony Ganzer, Faith Full Catholic Podcast
Tom Levinson, Amber Hacker, Jonathan Woodward and Elizabeth Windom, Interfaith America and Park Piedmont Advisors
Roxanne Stone, Katelyn Beaty and Jonathan Woodward, RNS
Amanda Henderson, Jack Jenkins and Jonathan Woodward, RNS and Illiff School of Theology
Excellence in Religion Documentaries
Gerald Krell and Adam Krell, American Public Television
Excellence in Short Religion Video
Jessie Wardarski, Associated Press
Excellence in Religion Reporting: Television
Avery Travis, David Barer, Richie Bowes and Josh Hinkle, KXAN
Steve Osunsami, Nathan Smith, Janice McDonald, Michael Mendelsohn, Jesse Bekas, Benjamin Brown, Emily Lippiello and Seni Tienabeso, ABC News
Simon Ostrovsky, Yegor Troyanovsky, Shahida Tulaganova and Morgan Till, PBS
Tony Carnes and Brian Finnerty, A Journey Through NYC Religions
Excellence in Religion Reporting: Magazines and Non-Daily Newspapers
Sam Kestenbaum, Harper's Magazine
Kelsey Dallas, Deseret News
Cheryl Bacon, Christian Chronicle
Elizabeth Eisenstadt Evans, Christian Century
Katie Collins Scott, National Catholic Reporter
Marilyn Cooper and Christen Aragoni, Liberal Education
Hayden Royster, Berkeleyside and California Magazine
Camillo Barone, National Catholic Reporter
Solène Tadié, Alberto M. Fernandez and Michele Chabin, National Catholic Register
Max Freedman, Alex Kane, Mari Cohen and Will Alden, Jewish Currents
Sarah Breger and Sue Fishkoff, Moment Magazine
Tom Gjleten, Moment Magazine
Bobby Ross Jr., Christian Chronicle
Erik Tryggestad, Christian Chronicle
Sharlee DiMenichi, Friends Publishing Corporation
Kevin Coval, Rachel Crowe, Anu Gorukanti, Rheya Spigner and Allie Vroegop, Interfaith America
Excellence in Overall Religion Coverage: Magazine, Single Issue
Jewish Currents
The Revealer
Moment Magazine
Nonfiction Book
Matthew D. Taylor, The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That Is Threatening Our Democracy
Amanda Tyler, Valerie Weaver-Zercher, How to End Christian Nationalism
Adelle Banks, Daniel Yang and Warren Bird, Becoming a Future-Ready Church: 8 Shifts to Encourage and Empower the Next Generation of Leaders
Adriana Carranca, Soul by Soul: The Evangelical Mission to Spread the Gospel to Muslims
Christopher Herlinger, Solidarity and Mercy: The Power of Christian Humanitarian Efforts in Ukraine
Elizabeth Dias and Lisa Lerer, The Fall of Roe: The Rise of a New America
Asaf Elia-Shalev, Israel’s Black Panthers: The Radicals Who Punctured a Nation’s Founding Myth
Brian Kaylor and Beau Underwood, Baptizing America: How Mainline Protestants Helped Build Christian Nationalism
Excellence in Religion Photography: Single Image
Luis Andres Henao, Associated Press
Jessie Wardarski, Associated Press
Excellence in Religion Photography: Gallery
Hanah Brockhaus, Catholic News Agency
Luis Andres Henao, Associated Press
Jessie Wardarski, Associated Press
Chandler Award for Excellence in Student Religion Reporting
Chloë Fodor, RNS
Rachel Hale, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and The Daily Cardinal
Rebecca Massel, The Forward
