The Hal Boyle Award 2021

Best newspaper, news service or digital reporting from abroad

AWARD DATE: 2021

AWARD NAME: The Hal Boyle Award 2021

AWARD RECIPIENT: New York Times Staff

AWARD RECIPIENT AFFILIATION: The New York Times

AWARD HONORED WORK: “The Collapse of Afghanistan”

AWARD SPONSOR: Norman Pearlstine in memory of Jerry Flint

Earlier than most news organizations, the Times reporting detailed the precarious hold the Ghani government had on the country and foretold the quick collapse of the Afghan security forces. Importantly, it also was at the forefront of holding the Biden administration to account for its botched exit — particularly its high-impact, forensic investigation that showed a U.S. drone strike on a suspected ISIS bomber was nothing of the sort. All of this was accomplished against the background of an unprecedented effort to exfiltrate Times reporters and Afghan staff from Kabul as the capital fell. Taken together, it was a model of covering a complex story in a dangerous environment, bringing two decades of journalistic expertise in Afghanistan to bear at the most crucial time.

Links to the winning work:

  1. Times Investigation: In U.S. Drone Strike, Evidence Suggests No ISIS Bomb
  2. A Journey Through Kabul on the Day of the Fall
  3. 11 Years After Trying to Kill One Other, a Marine and Talib Meet Again
  4. “The Daily” – “The Decision of My Life – Part 1”
  5. How Long Can the Afghan Security Forces Last on Their Own?
  6. Inside the Fall of Kabul: An On-the-Ground Account
  7. 5 Desperate Days: Escaping Kabul
  8. On Afghanistan’s Front Line, There Are No Good Choices
  9. A Wave of Afghan Surrenders to the Taliban Picks Up Speed
  10. Taliban Try to Polish Their Image as They Push for Victory
  11. Facing Economic Collapse, Afghanistan Is Gripped by Starvation
  12. A Siege, a Supply Run and a Descent Into a Decade-Old Battle
  13. Day 1 of the End of the U.S. War in Afghanistan
  14. Did the War in Afghanistan Have to Happen?

Citation for Excellence:
Staff
Reuters
“Shattered Ethiopia”