Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting has been awarded the Al Neuharth Award for Innovation in Investigative Journalism from the Asian American Journalists Association for the interactive feature Portraits of a Trump Supporter, explores the legion of voters behind Trump.
The project paints a picture of supporters of then Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, from across the country — who they are and what they care about.
Released January 2016, the story accompanied Reveal’s radio and podcast episode “Pumped On Trump.” It looks into the Trump support base, using data from online polling company, YouGov, to highlight the most important issues facing Trump proponents, telling them through individual portraits with audio clips of voters.
Polling data showed that terrorism and social security were among the top concerns of the voters. The typical Trump supporter was white and older. Readers learn rationales behind Trump supporters ranging from fear to attraction to Trump’s wealth and celebrity to frustration with America’s current state of affairs.
This award is offered in partnership with the Gannett Foundation to recognize groundbreaking work of journalists in the realm of watchdog journalism, who creatively use digital tools to explain and address important issues.
Reveal’s Scott Pham and Julia B. Chan produced the interactive, with additional production help from Reveal’s Rachel de Leon and Michael Montgomery.
The Asian American Journalists Association, a nonprofit educational organization, recognized award recipients at the AAJA Gala Scholarship & Awards Banquet on July 29 in Philadelphia, during the group’s 2017 National Convention.