California Watch has added two new reporters -- Susanne Rust and Ryan Gabrielson. Rust, who recently completed a Knight fellowship at Stanford University, will focus on the environment. Ryan Gabrielson, who recently completed a fellowship at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, will focus on public safety and law enforcement.

Brad Schrade will be joining the Minneapolis Star Tribune as an investigative reporter. He is currently a senior reporter and investigative editor at the Tennessean in Nashville.

Seattle Times' reporters Ken Armstrong and Nick Perry have written "Scoreboard, Baby: A Story of College Football, Crime and Complicity," which will be published by Bison Books in September.

Debbie Cenziper of the Washington Post won the National Association of Black Journalists’ investigative reporting prize. The Post’s Cheryl W. Thompson shared the special project prize with the Contra Costa Times.

Elaine Grossman of the National Journal Group received first prize awards for Online News and Features in the Society of Professional Journalists Washington Dateline Awards and Best Spot News or Exclusive Single News Story in the Specialized Information Publishers Foundation’s Editorial Awards. The article revealed disagreements between top Obama administration Cabinet members over how to maintain the nation’s aging nuclear arsenal.

The Utah-Idaho-Spokane Associated Press Association recently awarded Ben Botkin of the Times-News in Twin Falls, Idaho, a first place award for investigative reporting. His story, "Questions raised about CSI/Builder relationship," explored the bidding practices of a community college. He was also awarded first place in beat reporting for state budget coverage by the UISAPA.

Mark Greenblatt, investigative reporter at KHOU-TV in Houston, won the Livingston Award for Young Journalists given to the top local journalist in America under 35 years old. In the past year he also won a Peabody Award, the I.R.E. Medal, the duPont-Columbia, a National Edward R. Murrow Award, a National Headliner Award and a National Emmy Award.

The Alaska Press Club’s Public Service award was presented to the Skagway News and the University of Alaska at Fairbanks Journalism department. Brian Patrick O'Donoghue, UAF chair, and his students were recognized for "Reporting from Iraq," a month-long news feed featuring blogs, print and broadcast coverage of Alaska-based soldiers.

The Livingston Awards for Young Journalists, a $10,000 prize given for local, national and international reporting by journalists under the age of 35, were awarded to:

Abbie Boudreau, CNN, for international reporting, “Killings at the Canal: The Army Tapes.”

Mark Greenblatt, KHOU-TV, for local reporting, “Under Fire: Discrimination and Corruption in the Texas National Guard.”

David Nathaniel Philipps, the Colorado Springs Gazette, for national reporting, “Casualties of War.”

John Bartosek has been hired as the new editor of PolitiFact Florida, a joint project of the St. Petersburg Times and the Miami Herald. Most recently, Bartosek worked at the Palm Beach Post. PolitiFact fact-checks politicians’ statements and claims.