The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences has nominated two ProPublica investigations for three News & Documentary Emmy Awards.
ProPublica and PBS Frontline’s collaboration “Documenting Hate” is a nominee in Outstanding Investigative Documentary and Outstanding Writing. The two-part film special investigated the violent white supremacists and neo-Nazis involved in the 2017 “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, exposing the widespread governmental failure to curb the criminal activities of dangerous white power groups. The joint reporting had immediate impact, including the criminal prosecution of eight members and associates of the Rise Above Movement, a Southern California-based white supremacist group; and three of these men have since been sentenced to prison.
“Case Cleared: How Rape Goes Unpunished in America,” a joint ProPublica, Newsy and Reveal series, is a nominee in Outstanding Investigative Report in a Newsmagazine. The project uncovered how police departments across the country are using a designation called “exceptional clearance” to make it seem as though they’ve solved a significant number of rape cases when they’ve simply closed them without actually arresting a suspect. The little-known category is designed to be used sparingly, but the reporting showed how law enforcement agencies have grown to depend on exceptional clearance to improve their public image.
The winners of the 40th News and Documentary Emmy Awards will be announced Sept. 24. You can see the full list of nominees here.