ATLANTA, July 20, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) awarded four prestigious national Sigma Delta Chi Awards to Gray Media’s national investigative team, InvestigateTV, and its New Orleans, Louisiana, station WVUE FOX 8.
InvestigateTV received two national awards for its deep-dive reporting on healthcare inequities and police interrogation tactics. For the third consecutive year, WVUE FOX 8 was also honored with two national awards, including top honors for breaking news and large-market investigative reporting.
“These national honors reflect Gray’s deep commitment to high-impact journalism that serves our communities and holds the powerful accountable,” said Gray Chief Operating Officer Sandy Breland. “Whether providing critical, real-time information during a breaking news crisis or spending months uncovering systemic inequities, our teams at InvestigateTV and WVUE deliver reporting that truly matters. We are incredibly proud of their dedication and this well-deserved recognition.”
The 2025 Sigma Delta Chi Award-winning entries from Gray include:
- Television/Audio Inequities in Society: InvestigateTV won for “Dead Zone,” a powerful series exposing how the lack of high-speed internet in rural America fuels life-and-death disparities in healthcare access, disproportionately affecting poor, elderly, and Black communities. Partnering with KFF Health News, the team analyzed FCC broadband maps alongside health workforce and outcomes data to identify 210 “dead zone” counties.
- Television/Audio Crime Reporting: InvestigateTV won for “Confession Questions,” a compelling investigation into police interrogation techniques and the controversial tactic of using deception during questioning. The report featured Amanda Knox, who was later exonerated in her roommate’s death, describing how interrogation pressure led to a false confession.
- Television Breaking News (All Markets): WVUE FOX 8 news staff won first place for its wall-to-wall coverage of the Bourbon Street Terror Attack on January 1, 2025. Judges praised the station’s coverage, noting that it showed “speed doesn’t automatically conflict with accuracy and compassion.”
- Television Investigative Reporting (Large Market): WVUE FOX 8 won for “Outside the Office: The Indictment.” The multi-year investigation into former New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s misuse of public funds and her relationship with a former police officer assigned to her security team led to a federal grand jury indictment.
The Society of Professional Journalists’ Sigma Delta Chi Awards recognized outstanding work published or broadcast in 2025, with judges selecting winners from entries across print, radio, television, and online categories to honor journalism that promotes a well-informed citizenry and protects free speech.
About Gray Media:
Gray Media, Inc. (NYSE: GTN) is a multimedia company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. We are the nation’s largest owner of top-rated local television stations and digital assets. As of July 15, 2026, we serve 117 full-power television markets that collectively reach approximately 37% of US television households. The portfolio includes 78 markets with the top-rated television station and 101 markets with the first and/or second highest rated television station in average all-day ratings across the 116 of such markets that were measured by Nielsen in 2025. We also own the largest Telemundo Affiliate group with 46 markets and Gray Digital Media, a full-service digital agency offering national and local clients digital marketing strategies with the most advanced digital products and services. Our additional media properties include video production companies Raycom Sports, Tupelo Media Group, and PowerNation Studios, and studio production facilities Assembly Atlanta and Third Rail Studios.
Gray Contact:
Sandy Breland, Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, 404-266-8333
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