Announcing the 2026 Winners of the Mike Berger Award & the Paul Tobenkin Memorial Award

Honolulu Civil-Beat and The War Horse to be Honored

Reporters from the Honolulu Civil-Beat and The War Horse have won the 2026 Meyer “Mike” Berger Award and the 2026 Paul Tobenkin Memorial Award, respectively. The two awards are judged by Columbia Journalism School faculty annually and will be given out on Journalism Day in May as part of graduation. The winners will speak to the graduating class of 2026.

John Hill has won the 2026 Meyer “Mike” Berger Award for “When No One is Watching,” a four-part investigative series in the Honolulu Civil-Beat about what can happen in a foster home when no one is supervising the foster parents, and the consequences of abusive care years later when former foster boys age out of the system. Hill told the story of a foster dad who took in over 60 boys deemed “difficult to handle” over a twenty year period.  He had been lauded by the child welfare system for being a miracle worker with such cases. A civil court case brought by one of the survivors alerted Hill to the systemic dysfunction ruining the lives of boys and young teens. Hill reached out to dozens of foster boys and their relatives, and obtained police reports and court records for the series.

Named for the late New York Times reporter Meyer “Mike” Berger, the Berger Award is given annually to a reporter(s) for an outstanding example of in-depth, human interest reporting. The award carries a $1,500 honorarium. 

The 2026 Paul Tobenkin Memorial Award winner is investigative reporter Sonner Kehrt for a series of stories in The War Horse, an independent nonprofit newsroom dedicated to investigating the U.S. Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs. Kehrt’s reports shed light on the effect the Trump Administration’s discriminatory policies have had on military families. Through richly sourced reporting and compassionate anecdotes, she examined how the policies have impacted women in combat, transgender service people, and the mixed-immigration status of military families. Kehrt, a former Coast Guard officer, humanized the plight of American service women and men who are being marginalized even as they serve honorably and make sacrifices for their country. 

The Tobenkin Award judges also selected two finalists: "Undocumented: Texas' Immigration Impact in a New Trump Era" from KXAN, Austin and "Alligator Alcatraz" from the Miami Herald and the Tampa Bay Times.

The Paul Tobenkin Memorial Award, named in honor of the late New York Herald Tribune reporter, recognizes outstanding achievements in reporting on racial or religious hatred, intolerance, or discrimination in the United States. The award also carries a $1,500 honorarium.

2026 Berger Award Jurors’ Citation: 

“When No One is Watching,” an investigative series by Honolulu Civil-Beat reporter John Hill, told the story of a foster dad who took in over 60 boys deemed “difficult to handle” over a twenty year period.  He had been lauded by the child welfare system for being a miracle worker with such cases, and praised in the mainstream press.  But John Teixeira was hiding a dark secret.  He abused those in his care physically, mentally, and sexually, driving at least one to suicide. He also did nothing to stop the older ones from abusing their younger foster brothers.  

A civil court case brought by one of the survivors alerted Hill to the systemic dysfunction ruining the lives of boys and young teens who were already dealt a tough hand. The judge in that case likened living in that home to “Lord of the Flies.”

Reporting the story meant overcoming the denial and shame of many of the boys. Nevertheless, he was able to reach dozens of survivors and their relatives. He obtained police reports, court records in separate cases, property records, business records, probation files, an autopsy, and reviewed social media accounts. Writing in a four-part series for the Honolulu Civil Beat, Hill told their stories, interviewing JR, the lead plaintiff in the case, and other boys who had lived with Teixeira. Amazingly, he even talked to the accused, John Teixeira, himself.  He uncovered federal assessments that warned of the very problems that plagued the system.  As the series unfolded in September 2025, the state tried to seal the documents Hill had used to report out his story - documents that had been available for a year.

Jurors: June Cross, Joanne Faryon and Marguerite Y. Holloway

Link to work: 

When No One is Watching in Honolulu Civil-Beat

2026 Tobenkin Award Jurors’ Citation:

The 2026 Paul Tobenkin Memorial Award winner is Sonner Kehrt, whose series of stories for The War Horse exposed the human cost of the Trump administration's discriminatory policies in the military. Through richly sourced reporting and compassionate anecdotes, Kehrt examined how the policies have impacted women in combat, transgender service people, and the mixed-immigration status of military families. Her three pieces were republished by Mother Jones, The 19^th, and local newsrooms. The impact of the series was immediate: major outlets, including Newsweek and NBC, sought interviews with one of Kehrt’s subjects, Army Major Alivia Stehlik, who was mistreated by Trump’s transgender policies; her story about the deportation of an active-duty Army sergeant’s wife was cited in congressional reports; and Kehrt appeared on a Vox podcast about how women were being pushed out of the military. Kehrt is an investigative reporter at The War Horse, and a former Coast Guard officer with a master’s in governance from Georgetown University and journalism from UC Berkeley. She humanized the plight of American service women and men who serve honorably and make sacrifices for their country yet are marginalized and whose civil and human rights are violated. 

The Tobenkin Award judges also selected two finalists: "Undocumented: Texas' Immigration Impact in a New Trump Era" from KXAN, and "Alligator Alcatraz" from the Miami Herald and the Tampa Bay Times.

Jurors: Dolores A Barclay, Maria Elena Cabral and Liz Donovan

Link to work: 

Sonner Kehrt’s Reporting in The War Horse

2026 Tobenkin Award Finalist Citations:

• "Undocumented: Texas' Immigration Impact in a New Trump Era" from KXAN, Austin 

While other investigative news features have focused primarily on the plight of individual immigrants and detainees, and the broader scope of President Trump’s immigration removal policies, KXAN in Texas examined how these policies have changed entire communities. Its series, “Undocumented,” found fear, labor shortages, compromised health, and education issues in a gracefully written and well-reported project.

• "Alligator Alcatraz" from the Miami Herald and the Tampa Bay Times

The Miami Herald and Tampa Bay Times produced a detailed and critical investigation of the Everglades prison created by President Trump that refuted egregious claims by Trump and his administration that the detention center, known as Alligator Alley, held “some of the most vicious people on the planet.” Reporters quickly gathered public records once the facility opened and doggedly pursued other data for a crisply written and meticulously reported series of stories that exposed the Trump administration’s lies and human rights violations of those imprisoned. The series is a triumph for good journalism.