The Penlight Prize honors exemplary public-records-based news stories made available to readers free of charge with a $25,000 prize.
Submission deadline: Sept. 15, 2026 (extended from Sept. 1)
Eligibility
- The submission must be substantially based on documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act or other public records laws.
- It also must be available free of charge, with no paywall.
- The award can be divided equally among up to four co-authors.
- Applications must be submitted by the author(s) themselves. Third-party nominations won’t be accepted.
- Articles must have been published on or after Sept. 1, 2025.