ABA announces eight winners of the 2026 Silver Gavel Awards for Media and the Arts

May 20, 2026

ABA announces eight winners of the 2026 Silver Gavel Awards for Media and the Arts

WASHINGTON, May 20, 2026 -Jailhouse lawyering, social media, equal rights, pardons, debt, appeals, birthright citizenship and same-sex marriage took the top honors for the 2026 American Bar Association Silver Gavel Awards for Media and the Arts.

The awards, which recognize outstanding work that fosters the American public's understanding of law and the legal system, are the ABA's highest honor in recognition of this purpose.

This year eight Silver Gavels and six Honorable Mentions were presented from among 160 entries received in all eligible categories, which include books, documentaries, commentary, drama and literature, magazines, newspapers, radio and podcasts, television and websites and multimedia. There were 31 finalists. No more than one Silver Gavel is presented in each category. Honorable Mentions are also recognized, but awards are not presented in every category every year.

"One of the most important ways the ABA promotes the rule of law and our system of justice and democracy is through the Silver Gavel awards," said Ruth Bahe-Jachna, chair of the ABA Standing Committee on Gavel Awards. This year, the selection committee was greatly impressed with the very high quality of the semi-finalist entries, and we are very proud of our media and arts community for their demonstrated commitment to speaking out and educating the American public in accessible and engaging ways on a wide variety of timely legal issues and challenges."

The ABA has presented the awards each year since 1958. The 18-member ABA Standing Committee on Gavel Awards makes the final award decisions. ABA President Michelle A. Behnke will present Silver Gavels and Honorable Mentions on Aug. 1 at 3 p.m. CDT at a public program during the ABA Annual Conference in Chicago. The event is free and open to the public.

The following is a complete list of winners with links to their work:

Books
Silver Gavel - "The Jailhouse Lawyer"
Penguin Random House
Calvin Duncan and Sophie Cull, authors

Honorable Mention - "The Containment: Detroit, the Supreme Court, and the Battle for Racial Justice in the North"
Picador
Michelle Adams, author

Documentaries
Silver Gavel - "Can't Look Away: The Case Against Social Media"
DCTV & Bloomberg News
Matthew O'Neill, producer, director, cinematographer, DCTV
Perri Peltz, producer, director, DCTV
Anna Casper, producer, DCTV
Kyle Kelley, cinematographer, Bull Moose Pictures
Jeff Arak, cinematographer, DCTV
Devid Meneses, editor, DCTV
Olivia Carville, investigative reporter, Bloomberg News
Kristin Powers, Reto Gregori, David Merritt, John Micklethwait, editors, Bloomberg News
Julia Rosenblum, co-producer, Bloomberg News

Honorable Mention - "Ratified"
Deborah Riley Draper and Sabaah Folayan, producers
Emily Best, producer
Megan Goedewaagen, Sarah Smith, Jonako Donley, Iris Smith, Jennifer Wilson, Kaily Smith Westbrook, Tara Smith, Stephanie Soechtig, Kristin Lazure, Regina K. Scully, Leslie Berriman, Candace "Candy" Straight, co-executive producers, Little Walnut Productions
Abigail Disney, Chris Renteria, Denis Henry Hennelly, Elizabeth Weiss Roberts, Lela Wadsworth, co-producers
Eve M. Cohen, director of photography
Nathan Bowhall, editor

Drama & Literature
Silver Gavel - "Lilly"
Patricia Clarkson, John Benjamin Hickey, Thomas Sadosky, actors
Ariel Marx, music
Frankie Pine, music supervisor
Kiersten Hargroder, costume designer
Nancy Richardson, Joan Sobel, editors
Toby Corbett, production designer
Noah Greenberg, director of photography
Allyn Stewart, Kelly E. Ashton, Kerianne Flynn, Jyoti Sarda, Simone Pero, J. Todd Harris, Christine Schwarzman, Julie Kaufman, producers
Rachel Feldman, director, producer, writer
Adam Prince, writer
Based on the life of Lilly Ledbetter and "Grace and Grit" by Lilly Ledbetter and Lanier Scott Isom

Magazines
Silver Gavel - "Erasing the Verdict"
Bloomberg Businessweek
Monte Reel, writer

Newspapers
Silver Gavel - "Zombie Debt"
Bloomberg News
Noah Buhayar, Coulter Jones, Eric Fan, Jel Kao, Jeremy Diamond, Aaron Gordon, reporters
Jason Grotto, John Voskuhl, Nadja Popovich, editors
Sophie Butcher, Jason Leopold, Cecil Egbele, photo editors

Honorable Mention - "Maryland's District Court Commissioner System"
The Baltimore Banner
Dylan Segelbaum, reporter
Audrey Cooper, editor-in-chief
Andrea McDaniels, managing editor
Richard Martin, senior deputy managing editor for projects, investigations and enterprise
Eileen Holliday, breaking news editor
T.J. Ortenzi, deputy managing editor of audience and digital
Stokely Baksh, audience engagement editor
Bryan Brandom, copy chief
Greg Morton, data editor
Allan James Vestal, senior digital visualization reporter
Rohan Mattu, digital producer
Ariel Zambelich, visuals director
Tennyson Donyea, author of The Scan
James Meadows, newsletter editor

Radio and Podcasts
Silver Gavel - "The Last Appeal"
Dateline NBC, NBC News
Liz Cole, Paul Ryan, executive producers
Dan Slepian, Liz Brown Kuriloff, Lynn Keller, producers
Nick McElroy, Rachel Yang, field producers
Samantha Springer, associate producer
Lester Holt, correspondent/host
Colin Dow, Greg Smith, Deb Brown, David Varga, editors
Bryson Barnes, audio production
Rob Byers, Joe Plourde, Rick Kwan, Rich Cutler, sound editors

Honorable Mention - "The Rise and Fall of Agency Power: From Chevron Deference to Loper Bright"

UnCommon Law, Bloomberg Industry Group
Matthew Schwartz, host and producer
Jeremy Block, editor and executive producer

Television
Silver Gavel - "Birthright Citizenship: A Constitutional Test"
Newshour, PBS News
Emily Carpeaux, Matt Loffman, Beth Summers, senior producers
Sara Just, executive producer
Geoff Bennett, anchor
Stephanie Sy, correspondent
Maea Lenei Buhre, Shrai Popat, producers
Taylor Bowie, Katie Marlow, production assistants
Elie Khadra, camera,
Kojo Boateng, Christian Parr, graphics,
Stuart Cohen, editor

Honorable Mention - "Rule of Law Series"
60 Minutes, CBS News
Scott Pelley, Cecelia Vega, correspondents
Bill Owens, Tanya Simon, executive producers
Andy Court, Ian Flickinger, Camilo Galvez, Maria Gavrilovic, Patricia Milton, Annabelle Hanflig-Montoya, Aaron Weisz, producers
Alex Ortiz, Georgia Rosenberg, Michelle Karim, Katie Jahns, Mary Cunningham, associate producers
Draggan Mihailovich, executive editor
Michael Mongulla, Joe Schanzer, April Wilson, editors
Christopher Albert, Dan Bussell, Dennis Dillon, Robert Fortunado, Sean Healey, Roger Herr, Mark LaGanga, Don Lee, camera technicians
Tim Camarda, Russ Fisher, Edward Jones, Eric Kerchner, Charlie Macarone, Matthew Magratten, Stan Wilkins, Mark Wilson, Everett Wong, sound technicians
Philip Holsinger, photographer
Will Croxton, digital producer
Mimi Lamarre, broadcast associate

Web & Multimedia
Silver Gavel - "How the Supreme Court Ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges Legalized Same-Sex Marriage"
Retro Report
Kyra Darnton, executive producer
Chris Buck, Retro Report founder
Kit. R. Roane, producer
Brian Kamerzel, editor
Syliva Cahill, archival producer
Mimi Pfahler, archival associate producer

Honorable Mention - "Undocumented: Texas' Immigration Impact in a New Trump Era"
KXAN, Austin, Texas NBC Affiliate
Christopher Adams, data reporter/producer
David Barer, senior investigative producer
Arezow Doost, Matt Grant, Mercedes Hernandez, Dalton Huey, Avery Travis, Kelly Wiley, investigative reporters
Josh Hinkle, director of investigations & innovation
Dylan McKim, Adam Schwager, state bureau reporters
Grace Reader, city reporter
Sandra Sanchez, border correspondent
Talisa Treviño, investigative intern
Joy-Serene Adams, Stepanie Soto, Cameron Young, directors
Haley Cihock, news director
Forest Langlee, senior director
Chris Ayers, senior graphic artist
Wendy Gonzalez, graphic artist
Jordan Belt, Tim Holcomb, photojournalists
Richie Bowes, Chris Nelson, Emiliano Peña, investigative photojournalists
Eric Lefenfeld, lead editor
José Acevedo Negrón, Esmeralda Zamora, digital producers
Margaret Grigsby, streaming producer
Jaclyn Ramkissoon, social media producer
Robert Sims, special projects developer
Kate Winkle, digital director
Brooke Blackwood, marketing producer
Erik Candiani, marketing director
Seth Skuza, marketing manager