L.A. Times Recognized in L.A. Press Club’s Southern California Journalism Awards

The Los Angeles Times was honored by the Los Angeles Press Club for a wide range of work in the 65th annual Southern California Journalism Awards, which were announced at a gala on June 25 in downtown Los Angeles.

In all, The Times took home 49 awards, including 24 first-place awards, 20 second-place honors and 5 third-place awards. In addition, Times Staff Writer Alene Tchekmedyian received the 2023 Guardian Award for Contributions to Press Freedom.

Tchekmedyian, who now works as an investigative reporter, covered the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department from 2019 to 2022, focusing on accountability stories and writing about failures by officials to comply with transparency laws. Tchekmedyian said she’s proud of the work she did while covering the sheriff’s department, including the stories she worked on with Paul Pringle exposing that sheriff’s deputies had taken and shared photos of Kobe Bryant’s helicopter crash and the investigation she worked on with Ben Poston and Julia Barajas that found that deputies searched most of the bike riders they pulled over and most of the stops involved Latino cyclists. In addition, she said one of her favorite pieces was a story about a secretive unit, started under Sheriff Villanueva, that was accused of looking into his political adversaries.

“One of the most important jobs of journalists is to cast a light on those who hold power, and Alene’s work is a shining example,” L.A. Press Club Press Rights Chair Adam Rose said in a news release. “She’s provided Los Angeles with vital coverage of opaque institutions, taken readers inside law enforcement scandals, and helped all journalists by fighting for transparency.”

For the complete list of award recipients, visit lapressclub.org.