The Hearst Journalism Awards program has done a lot for me these past three years. Each time, I have come away with new friends, great experiences and a renewed appreciation for the quality of journalism that can be done on a tight deadline in an unfamiliar city. This year's topic was:
"The demographic of San Francisco has been changing the last couple of years and its impact is being felt by many long-term residents as real estate prices continues to sky-rocket and high tech businesses establish themselves in the city and the rest of the Bay Area. Activists are raising their voices and political agendas are forming. Who are the people, what are their stories and how is this new demographic challenging the way people live in this historic city of San Francisco?"
We had about 36 hours to visualize this issue. Every one of us took a slightly different approach to the topic, but every single take was very strong. In my three years at Hearst, I think it was collectively the strongest photojournalism I have seen at the Championships. It was an honor to work alongside Andrew Renneisen, Callaghan O'Hare, Leah Klafczynski, Tim Tai and Zack Wittman. I hope that they share in my feeling that, although we were competing against each other, we were also working together to give a voice to the people affected by this issue--an issue I think we all came to care deeply about.