Illinois Press Association investigating 2011 contest results

The Illinois Press Association is investigating some of the results of its 2011 journalism contest, including whether the Chicago Sun-Times was given a prize that judges had determined was to be awarded to the Chicago Tribune, according to the Illinois Times newspaper.

David Porter, a former IPA employee who headed up the contest, told the Times that the final contest results were changed after it became known that the Sun-Times had won a Pulitzer Prize for its entry that year but was scored second in the “best web project” category. The Sun-Times Pulitzer for local reporting used a series of stories and photographs to spotlight Chicago’s violence problem, including how a so-called no-snitch code impacted crimefighting efforts in Chicago.

The IPA already has acknowledged that results were changed in a 2011 photo category, giving the Vienna Times first place instead of the Pinckneyville Press, according to the Times. To read the full story, click here.