The 30 | Awards
Accolades ≠ achievement. Receiving an award for writing, photography, or other creative endeavors feels good because some external arbiter has examined a field of peers and placed the gold star next to your name.
But even if one person judges the hopeful group using a single set of standards, the decision will always originate from a fallible human being. A person with their own biases and preferences. A person who, by definition, is not someone else -- someone who might have selected you or a different winner.
That's what I always loved about track and field, and now triathlons: the clock is not subjective.
I could spend many more words discussing other inherent flaws -- who decided the list of nominees, for one example -- but we often turn to experts for some clarity in the chaos of content. These judges offer their imprimaturs, and, within reason, the selections reflect a standard of excellence.
Abbreviated highlights from a raft of possible links to share during journalism awards season:
Pulitzer Prizes
"By the end of the fall semester, she had disappeared from our high school, leaving only sordid rumors and a nascent urban legend."
National Magazine Awards
"All of the women learned of their pregnancies on the road and none expected to deliver in a refugee camp..."
The Webby Awards
"Some round-trip migrations can be as long as 44,000 miles, equivalent to almost two round-the-world trips."
James Beard Media Awards
"His story is the one I’ve been carting around in my notebook for the past few decades, sure I was ready to write it after five years or ten years, only to learn of another twist..."
Peabody Awards (in May)
"The podcast uses investigative journalism to honor lives and reveals what’s been hidden, not published and not taught."
As we close out National Poetry Month, the current U.S. Poet Laureate has finished her term, and I missed the final event because of other life happenings. I assume Tracy K. Smith offered as many insights as she often does.
The concluding verse, however, goes to Forrest Gander, this year's Pulitzer Prize winner for poetry.