Chicago Public Media staff at WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times were honored with 27 Peter Lisagor Awards for excellence in journalism in 2025, the most awards won by any news organization this year, according to a May 11 announcement.
The Peter Lisagor Awards are presented by the Chicago Headline Club to recognize exemplary work in reporting, editing, photojournalism, data, audio and community engagement. The recognition highlights the impact of Chicago Public Media’s journalism across multiple categories and platforms.
Among those recognized were Lynn Sweet from the Chicago Sun-Times and Cheryl Raye-Stout from WBEZ, both receiving Lifetime Achievement Awards. Other award-winning work included “Chicago Under ICE” by Frank Main and Alexandra Salomon for dogged reporting and editing; “Chicago renters cast adrift” for public interest reporting; as well as honors for best news photo, feature photo, column or editorial writing, music coverage, health reporting (audio), deadline reporting (audio), community reporting (both print/online and audio), environment/climate change coverage (audio), political/government reporting (audio), arts/entertainment coverage (audio), sports coverage (audio), race/diversity coverage (including student projects), crime/justice coverage (student category), education reporting in both print/online and audio formats, business reporting (audio), feature series/reporting in both single story/audio formats as well as large print/online series.
Winners also included projects on data journalism such as “Who Owns Chicago?”, community engagement efforts like “What to know about immigration operations and National Guard deployments to Chicago,” along with other specialized topics reflecting diverse aspects of life in Illinois. Multiple collaborative projects featured contributions from organizations including Chalkbeat, CU-CitizenAccess, Saluki Local Reporting Lab and The Daily Egyptian.
The awards reflect ongoing efforts within local media organizations to address key issues affecting communities through investigative journalism and storytelling. As demonstrated by these recognitions across various fields—from health to education—local journalists continue playing a significant role informing the public.
