The Washington Post has won the most prestigious award in journalism -- the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service Journalism. They also won five other pulitzers for breaking news, national reporting, international reporting, feature writing and commentary. But the big award, the gold medal award, is the one for public service journalism.
The Post won the award for their reporting on the poor treatment wounded soldiers were getting after they returned from Iraq and Afghanistan. They exposed the Republican lie about how much they supported the troops.
The Republicans put ribbons on their SUVs and wore their lapel pins, but when it came to seeing that veterans got what they needed after returning, they fell far short.
The newspaper exposed the atrocious conditions at Walter Reed Hospital which had rodents, cockroaches, peeling paint and rooms badly in need of repair. The soldiers had to wait months for their disability payments, and couldn't even get their mail delivered in a timely manner.
The expose resulted in the firing of the Secretary of the Army and the general in charge of Walter Reed, and promises by the administration to improve the treatment of veterans. Some things have been done, but far more needs to be done for all veterans.
However, nothing would have been done without the excellent reporting done by the Washington Post. They richly deserve the award they won.
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