The Aronson Awards

Social Justice Journalism & Cartooning with a Conscience

Dear Friends,
After a brief pause The James Aronson Awards for Social Justice returns with a new format to recognize one outstanding journalist per year. Starting in 2026 the committee will select an outstanding journalist who will present their work at our awards ceremony.

For 30 years the James Aronson Awards for Social Justice Journalism has honored some of the best and the bravest journalists: New York Times columnist Bob Herbert, who without compromise wrote about police brutality; Gary Webb, whose exposure of the Iran Contra war sent shock waves internationally; Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez of Democracy Now!, for bringing a clear social justice vision to reporting; Alan Nairn, Gary Young, Herb Boyd and Kevin Sawyer, from inside the prison walls of San Quentin; and Susan Ferriss' outstanding series "Shocked and Humiliated," which revealed how US federal agents used shackling, handcuffing, and hours of interrogation and vaginal probing in the quest for hidden drugs.

James Aronson was a professor at Hunter College. The founder of the independent left weekly newspaper The National Guardian, Aronson was a maverick. He collected a wealth of materials written by W.E.B. Du Bois, now part of the UMass Amherst archives, and he was the first American professor invited to teach journalism in the People’s Republic of China in 1979. Aronson taught at many of the private universities in New York City, but it wasn’t until he landed a job at CUNY that he found his home.

James Aronson was a professor at Hunter College. The founder of the independent left weekly newspaper The National Guardian, Aronson was a maverick. He collected a wealth of materials written by W.E.B. Du Bois, now part of the UMass Amherst archives, and he was the first American professor invited to teach journalism in the People’s Republic of China in 1979. Aronson taught at many of the private universities in New York City, but it wasn’t until he landed a job at CUNY that he found his home.

After his death in 1988 the Aronson Awards for Social Justice Journalism was founded in the Department of Film and Media Studies to foster his belief that there are honest journalists who are conscious of the potential power of an informed people.

Warmly,
Tami Kashia Gold, Director Aronson Awards for Social Justice Journalism
David Alm, Committee Chair