WTTW NOMINATED FOR 35 LISAGOR AWARDS

The Chicago Headline Club has announced that WTTW has been nominated for 35 Peter Lisagor Awards for 2025. The finalists were selected by an independent chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists from across more than 100 categories including newspapers, magazines, television, radio, and digital media. 

WTTW is recognized for: 

Best Feature or Human Interest Single Story
Chicago Stories: Legendary Blizzards
Eddie Griffin, Alex Dawson, Lauren R. Drell, Michael Buhrow, Eric Seals, Anthony Fleming III, Anna Chadwick Gardner, Shelley Spencer

Best Community Engagement
The State of Our City: A WTTW News Town Hall
Jay Smith, Crystin Immel, Brandis Friedman, Shelby Hawkins

Best Use of Feature Video
Touring Chicago’s Lakefront with Geoffrey Baer
Geoffrey Baer, Michael West, Brendan Brown, Joe Winston, Brendan Walsh, Shelley Spencer

Best Illustration or Graphics
WTTW News Explains
Justin Younger, Natalie Younger, Greg Bodfish, Alex Blanchette

Best Social or Short Form Video
Back in Time: Chicago Streetcars
Patty Wetli, Nicole Cardos
Chicago Stories: Architecture Gems – The Marshall Field and Company Building
Sean Keenehan, Wayne Kumingo, Tim Boyd, Maureen Waller, Anne Gleason, Anna Gardner, Meredith Francis, Heidi Zersen

Best Headline from a Print/Online Publication
“Ragweed vs. Goldenrod: One of Them Makes You Sneeze, the Other is the Bee’s Knees”
Patty Wetli

Best Featured Reporter or Host
Brandis Friedman

Best Column or Editorial from a Small Print/Online Publication
“For New Mothers, Rushing Back to Congress is Part of the Job. Should it Be?”
Brandis Friedman 

Best Health Reporting (small print/online)
“Roseland Hospital Failed to Monitor a Patient During a Mental Health Crisis, Regulators Say. Now He’s Charged with Killing His Wife”
Nick Blumberg

Best Health Reporting – Video
“Is the U.S. Prepared for the Next Pandemic? Learning Lessons from COVID-19” 
Brandis Friedman, Paul Caine, Crystin Immel

Best Community Reporting – Video

• “Federal Immigration Agents Targeted Northwest Side Neighborhoods. Residents Banded Together to Push Back”
  Joanna Hernandez
• The State of Our City: A WTTW News Town Hall
  Brandis Friedman, Shelby Hawkins, Crystin Immel, Jay Smith

Best Reporting on Environment/Climate Change (small print/online)
Patty Wetli on the Environment
Patty Wetli

Best Political and Government Reporting – Video
Chicago Stories: Rod Blagojevich
Tania Lindsay, Alicia Soller, Scott Holoubek, Brendan Walsh, Anthony Fleming III, Anna Chadwick Gardner, Shelley Spencer

Best Arts and Entertainment Reporting – Video
“Church of the Holy Family”
Marc Vitali, Nicole Cardos
Chicago Stories: Iconic Foods
Daniel Andries, Monica Eng, Bianca Lozano, Brian Clark, Tim Boyd, Anthony Fleming III, Anna Chadwick Gardner, Shelley Spencer
“Long-Shuttered Uptown Theatre Marks Centennial with New Book, Renewed Momentum for Restoration”
Nick Blumberg

Best Reporting on Race and Diversity – Video
Chicago Tonight: “George Floyd Anniversary Special”
Brandis Friedman, Shelby Hawkins, Bridgette Adu-Wadier, Abena Bediako, Crystin Immel
Chicago Tonight: “SNAP Benefit Cuts”
Brandis Friedman, Nick Blumberg, Bridgette Adu-Wadier, Shelby Hawkins, Crystin Immel
“Latino Pharmacist Bridging Cultural, Language Gaps on Chicago’s Northwest Side”
Joanna Hernandez

Best Science and Technology Reporting (small print/online)
Patty Wetli on Science and Nature
Patty Wetli

Best Science and Technology Reporting – Video 
“Northwestern University Lab Helps Shape the Future of Medical Monitoring”
Paul Caine
“University of Chicago Lab Connects Computers With the Human Body”
Joanna Hernandez

Best Reporting on Crime and Justice – Video
Chicago Stories: Inside the Tylenol Murders
Peter Marks, Ian Bertorelli, Bill Ward, Tim Boyd, Brendan Walsh, Anthony Fleming III, Anna Chadwick Gardner, Shelley Spencer

Best Education Reporting – Video
“’A Tsunami Coming from Washington’ – Chicago, Illinois Leaders Respond to Education Department Layoffs”
Matt Masterson, Brandis Friedman, Bridgette Adu-Wadier, Crystin Immel
“Volunteers Help Immigrant Parents Get Their Kids to School With ‘The Walking School Bus’’
Joanna Hernandez
“Departing CPS Chief Pedro Martinez Says He Has No Regrets, Decries ‘Bullying’ by Mayor and CTU”
Brandis Friedman, Paul Caine, Crystin Immel

Best Business Reporting – Video 
“In Chicago, Some Businesses Report Pandemic-Era Drop in Sales Amid Immigration Raids”
Joanna Hernandez
Chicago Stories: Marshall Field's
Heidi Zersen, Marcy Marzuki, David Fortney, Brendan Walsh, Anthony Fleming III, Anna Chadwick Gardner, Shelley Spencer

Best Feature Reporting Single Story/Episode (small and medium print/online)
“Take Note! Stationery Shops Enjoying Revived Interest in Analog Communication, Fueled by Social Media and Celebrities”
Patty Wetli, Nicole Cardos

Best Feature Reporting Single Story/Episode – Video
Touring Chicago’s Lakefront with Geoffrey Baer
Geoffrey Baer, Michael West, Brendan Brown, Joe Winston, Brendan Walsh, Shelley Spencer

Best Feature Reporting Series – Video 
Joanna Hernandez: Latino Voices Reporting
Joanna Hernandez
WTTW News Explains
Jay Smith, Abena Bediako, Patty Wetli, Justin Younger, Natalie Younger, Greg Bodfish, Alex Blanchette

The Chicago Headline Club established the Lisagor Awards in 1977 to inspire Chicago-area journalists to follow his outstanding example and to recognize truly superior contributions to journalism. Winners will be announced at a ceremony on Friday, May 8, 2026.

WTTW is the PBS member station in Chicago, committed to creating and presenting unique media content across distinct television and digital channels – WTTW, WTTW Prime, WTTW Create, WTTW PBS Kids 24/7, wttw.com, and the PBS/WTTW video app. Recognized for award-winning journalism and local productions – such as Chicago Stories, Firsthand, Chicago Tonight, Touring Chicago’s Lakefront, and Chicago Works – WTTW presents the very best in public affairs, arts and culture, nature and science, history and documentary, and children’s public media content. Connect with WTTW on Facebook, X, Instagram, and YouTube.