Glenn Greenwald and three other journalists who reported on the U.S. national security apparatus through leaks provided by Edward Snowden have won the George Polk Award for Journalism for 2013.
The awards are given yearly by Long Island University for the special achievements in journalism, particularly impactful investigative work.
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Ewen MacAskill and Laura Poitras, who worked on the story with Greenwald while at The Guardian, and Barton Gellman of the Washington Post were also named for their work on the Snowden leaks.
“In the tradition of George Polk, many of the journalists we have recognized did more than report news,” said John Darnton, curator of the awards, in a press release. “They heightened public awareness with perceptive detection and dogged pursuit of stories that otherwise would not have seen the light of day. Repercussions of the NSA stories in particular will be with us for years to come.”
Thirty journalists received Polk awards in 13 categories. Pete Hamill, former editor of the New York Post and the Daily News, garnered the George Polk Career Award.
Greenwald has since left The Guardian to join eBay founder Pierre Omidyar's First Look Media. His new venture within First Look, The Intercept, launched last week with fresh revelations from the Snowden documents.
Pressure from governments on Greenwald and his associates has continued despite numerous public accolades. His lawyer was recently detained at Heathrow Airport.
Not one to shy away from making his feelings on the UK government's treatment of journalists public, Greenwald tweeted:
In the UK government, this is known as the George Polk Award for Excellence in Terrorism http://t.co/K4Wr5vrjVf
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) February 17, 2014
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