Storm-hit newspapers win top US journalism prizes

The Pulitzer Prize, the top US journalism award, went to The Times-Picayune "for its heroic, multifaceted coverage of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath.

TheTimes-Picayune of New Orleans and The Sun Herald of Biloxi, Mississippi, shared the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for excellent coverage of Hurricane Katrina even as their staff and offices were hard-hit by the devastating storm, it was announced on Tuesday.

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The Pulitzer Prize, the top US journalism award, went to TheTimes-Picayune "for its heroic, multifaceted coverage of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, making exceptional use of the newspaper's resources to serve an inundated city," said the statement by the Pulitzer Prize Board.

The Times-Picayune also won the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting for its coverage of Katrina. The 90th annual prizes were announced at Columbia University.

The New Orleans newspaper's offices and plant were flooded, and many of its staffers were left homeless when the levees broke during the August. 29 storm. Much of the staff was forced to evacuate the city.

The Sun Herald won "for its valorous and comprehensive coverage of Hurricane Katrina, providing a lifeline for devastated readers," the board said.

The Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography went to the staff of The DallasMorning News, for its photographs that "depicted the chaos and pain" of the hurricane.