WTHR Indianapolis, KNXV Phoenix, KMGH Denver and WVIT
Hartford are receiving Peabody awards for their investigative reporting. A
total of 39 media outlets get Peabodys, given to the best in electronic media
in 2012.
Scott Pelley, anchor of The CBS Evening News, will emcee the
ceremony held May 20 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York.
Scripps station KNXV's "Ford Escape: Exposing a Deadly
Defect" investigative series led to a recall of more than 700,000 SUVs,
while sibling KMGH gets one for "Investigating the Fire," which
probed a controlled burn by state foresters that turned deadly. Dispatch
Broadcast-owned WTHR's "Investigating the IRS" report looked at
billions of dollars in fraudulent tax-claim payouts. NBC-owned WVIT Hartford
was awarded for its comprehensive coverage in "Breaking News: Tragedy at
Sandy Hook Elementary School."
Other winners of the 72nd annual awards, given out by the
University of Georgia's Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication,
include HBO series Girls, CBS newsmag
60 Minutes and ABC News' coverage of
Hurricane Sandy.
"Reviewing submissions for Peabody consideration is a
truly exciting process," said Horace Newcomb, director of the Peabody
Awards. "Producers and organizations send us their best work from the previous
year. It is an astonishing array of outstanding media accomplishment. From this
array, we must select the 'best of the best.' It's not always easy, but it
always demonstrates the meaning of true excellence in electronic media."
