2019 Daily Awards

When South Carolina’s top court officials refused to release complaints filed against some of the state’s most powerful judges, Reporter Joseph Cranney mined a network of sources to ferret out examples on his own.
And when those same court leaders balked at sharing information on the qualifications of the state’s lower court judges, Cranney found other ways to collect that information, slowly building the most comprehensive database yet on these little-known jurists. These are just two examples of Cranney’s assertiveness and tenacity as a journalist, and the results his efforts produce.
He’s a bulldog reporter who is inherently fair but unafraid to go head-to-head with those in power.
Fresh off a year in which his reporting helped send Columbia-area Solicitor Dan Johnson to federal prison for misconduct, Cranney dove into problems surrounding South Carolina’s sheriffs. He and reporter Tony Bartelme teamed up to produce “Above the Law,” which exposed how sheriffs across South Carolina lined their pockets on the public’s dime, tried to silence whistleblowers and bullied other public officials who questioned their behavior.
Cranney then turned his attention to South Carolina’s powerful circuit court judges, where he found the deck stacked against him at every turn. After numerous challenges, his story, “The Untouchables,” revealed that over the past two decades, more than 1,000 ethics complaints have been lodged against South Carolina judges, including allegations of influence peddling or judges mishandling conflicts of interest. The number of judges punished publicly as a result: zero. Court officials did their best to prevent this story from seeing the light.
Judges said Cranney’s coverage was incredibly strong with clean writing, good storytelling and extensive research. Every time he hit a dead end, he found a way to keep going. In a strong class of entries, this nominee stood out for his courage and persistence. Important, impactful work.