The American Society of Magazine Editors (ASME) today announced the finalists for the 2021 National Magazine Awards for Print and Digital Media. The 56th annual awards honor magazines and websites that consistently demonstrate superior execution of editorial objectives, innovative techniques, noteworthy enterprise and imaginative design.
ASME will celebrate the Ellie Awards and honor finalists virtually on Thursday, June 10th….
This year’s awards will be highlighted by the first-time presentation of the ASME Award for Coverage of Race in America. The finalists for this special award include The American Scholar, ESPN.com, ProPublica, TIME and Vanity Fair.
Another notable change for 2021 was the introduction of a new award for community journalism. The first nominees in that category are 5280, The Marshall Project with Slate, Mother Jones, ProPublica and Anchorage Daily News, and The Trace with Code Switch from NPR.
National Magazine Awards 2021 Finalists
General Excellence, News, Sports and Entertainment
The Atlantic
The Marshall Project
New York
The New York Times Magazine
The New Yorker
General Excellence, Service and Lifestyle
Epicurious
SELF
T: The New York Times Style Magazine
Vogue
WSJ. Magazine
General Excellence, Special Interest
Audubon
Harvard Business Review
Kazoo
Scientific American
Texas Monthly
General Excellence, Literature, Science and Politics
Aperture
The Believer
MIT Technology Review
Stranger’s Guide
Virginia Quarterly Review
Design
Bon Appétit
Fast Company
National Geographic
New York
WIRED
Photography
The Atlantic
GQ
New York
Stranger’s Guide
WSJ. Magazine
Feature Design
The Atlantic for “Nothing Can Stop What Is Coming”
Bon Appétit for “Taco Nation”
Here for “Natural Wonder”
Smithsonian for “The Charlatan Will See You Now”
Vanity Fair for “Let the Great World Spin”
Feature Photography
The California Sunday Magazine for “Our Border,” photographs by Carolyn Drake and Andres Gonzales
The New York Times Magazine for “America at Hunger’s Edge,” photographs by Brenda Ann Kenneally
The New Yorker for “A City Nurse,” photographs by Karen Cunningham
The New Yorker for “Whose Streets,” photographs by Isaac Scott
TIME for “Faces of Protest,” photographs by Adam Ferguson
Digital Storytelling
The Believer for “The Vine and the Fish,” by Leise Hook
National Geographic for “Your Climate, Changed”
Outside for “This Is Every Cyclist Who Was Killed by a Driver in 2020”
ProPublica and Honolulu Star-Advertiser for “Hawaii’s Beaches Are Disappearing,” by Ash Ngu, ProPublica, and Sophie Cocke, Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Texas Monthly for “All 144 Willie Nelson Albums, Ranked,” By David Courtney, Michael Hall, Rich Kienzle, Max Marshall, Joe Nick Patoski, John Spong and Christian Wallace
Social Media
Golf Digest
National Geographic for “Everest: Journey to the Roof of the World”
The New Yorker for “April 15, 2020”
ProPublica for “Grace: A Failure in Michigan’s Juvenile Justice System”
SELF
Podcasting
The Atlantic for three episodes of “Floodlines,” hosted by Vann R. Newkirk II: “Part 1: Antediluvian,” “Part 3: Through the Looking Glass” and “Part VIII: The Wake”
C13Originals for three episodes of “Gangster Capitalism: The NRA,” hosted by Andrew Jenks: “The Big Game,” “A Hostile Takeover” and “Down to the Studs”
The Intercept with Topic Studios, Invisible Institute and iHeartRadio, in association with Tenderfoot TV, for three episodes of “Somebody,” hosted by Shapearl Wells: “Who Shot Courtney Copeland?,” “The Nurse” and “The Police”
Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting for three episodes of: “American Rehab,” hosted by Al Letson: “A Desperate Call,” “A Venomous Snake” and “Shadow Workforce”
Unbothered by Refinery29 for three episodes of “Go Off, Sis,” hosted by Danielle Cadet, Stephanie Long, Kathleen Newman-Bremang and Chelsea Sanders: “Ally Is Spelled L.O.U.D.,” “Keep That Same Energy” and “Black Women Are Essential”
Video
Food & Wine for three episodes of “Tasting Home” with Kwame Onwuachi: “Travels With Papa,” directed by Jen Lomeli, “Following the Thread,” directed by Zoë Engongoro, and “In Her Footsteps,” directed by Zoë Engongoro and Jen Lomeli
The New Yorker for “Quiet No More,” directed by Eléonore Hamelin
Pop-Up Magazine for “Mama’s Babies,” directed by Adrian L. Burrell
T: The New York Times Style Magazine for “Long Island’s Enduring Black Beachfront Community,” directed by Joshua Kissi
TIME and the Marshall Project for “Anatomy of Hate,” directed by Emily Kassie
Single-Topic Issue
Bloomberg Businessweek for “The Lost Year”
National Geographic for “Earth Day 50th Anniversary”
Public Books and NYU Cities Collaborative for “Preexisting Conditions: What 2020 Reveals About Our Urban Future”
Texas Monthly for “Willie”
Vanity Fair for “The Great Fire: A Special Issue,” Guest Edited by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Personal Service
Bloomberg Businessweek for “Working From Home: The Ultimate Guide to Staying Productive—and Sane,” by the staff of Bloomberg Businessweek with Arianne Cohen
Marie Claire for “Invasion of Privacy: Marie Claire’s Guide to Protecting Yourself Online,” edited by Megan DiTrolio
The Marshall Project for “COVID-19: A Survival Guide for Incarcerated People,” by Lawrence Bartley, Brie Williams, M.D., M.S., and Leah Rorvig, M.D., M.S., and “Coronavirus Transforming Jails Across the Country,” by Cary Aspinwall, Keri Blakinger, Abbie Vansickle and Christie Thompson
Parents for “Kindness in 2020”
SELF for “Black Mental Health,” by Zahra Barnes, Candace Bond-Theriault, Patia Braithwaite, Rozalynn S. Frazier, C.P.T., and Tonya Russell
Leisure Interests
Bon Appétit for “The Basically Guide to Better Baking”
New York for three “Biography of a Building” articles by Matthew Sedacca: “Graham Court: The Gilded Age Rental,” “One Fifth: The Downtown Co-op of All Downtown Co-ops” and “Villa Charlotte Brontë: A Cliffside Co-op in the Bronx”
Parents for “Read Together, Be Together”
Polygon for “Animal Crossing: New Horizons Guides”
Texas Monthly for “The Year of the Taco,” by José R. Ralat
Community Journalism
5280 for “The Block,” by Robert Sanchez
The Marshall Project and Slate for “What Do We Really Know About the Politics of People Behind Bars?,” by Nicole Lewis, Aviva Shen and Anna Flagg, “Millennials, Meth and Mass Incarceration,” by Aviva Shen and Katie Park, and “What 2,392 Incarcerated People Think About #DefundThePolice,” by Nicole Lewis, Anna Flagg and Aviva Shen
Mother Jones for “Whose Streets?,” by Samantha Michaels, “How Black Oaklanders Finally Expelled the School Police,” by Edwin Rios, and “Carroll Fife Is in the House. Now She Wants to Burn It Down,” by Jamilah King
ProPublica and Anchorage Daily News for “Unheard,” by Adriana Gallardo, Nadia Sussman and Agnes Chang, ProPublica, and Kyle Hopkins and Michelle Theriault Boots, Anchorage Daily News
The Trace with Code Switch from NPR for “In a Year of Racial and Political Turmoil, This Black Gun Group Is Booming,” by Lakeidra Chavis and Agya K. Aning, and “Black and Up in Arms,” hosted by Gene Demby and Shereen Marisol Meraji with Lakeidra Chavis
Reporting
1843 Magazine for “‘If I Speak Out, They Will Torture My Family’: Voices of Uyghurs in Exile,” by John Phipps
The Atlantic for two articles by Barton Gellman: “The Election That Could Break America” and “How Trump Could Attempt a Coup”
The Intercept for “The CIA’s Afghan Death Squads,” by Andrew Quilty
The New York Times Magazine for “The Children in the Shadows,” by Samantha M. Shapiro
The New Yorker for three articles by Peter Hessler: “Life on Lockdown,” “How China Controlled the Virus” and “The Sealed City”
The New Yorker for “The Plague Year,” by Lawrence Wright
Slate for “The Store That Called the Cops on George Floyd,” by Aymann Ismail
Feature Writing
The American Scholar for “Slow Blues” by Tamara Dean
The California Sunday Magazine for “What Happened in Room 10?,” by Katie Engelhart
ESPN.com for “Michael Jordan: A History of Flight,” by Wright Thompson
The New York Times Magazine for “The Accusation,” by Sarah Viren
The New Yorker for “Thirty-Six Thousand Feet Under the Sea,” by Ben Taub
Runner’s World for “Twelve Minutes and a Life,” by Mitchell S. Jackson
Texas Monthly for “The Aftermath” by Robert Draper
Profile Writing
ESPN.com for “The Remarkable Life (and Near Death) of Boxer Christy Martin,” by Allison Glock
The New York Times Magazine for “It’s a Weird, Weird, Weird, Weird World,” by Sam Anderson
The New Yorker for “Skin in the Game,” by Emily Nussbaum
The New Yorker for “Survival Story,” by Jennifer Gonnerman
Philadelphia for “Remnants on a South Philly Stoop,” by Jason Sheehan
Essays and Criticism
The Atlantic for “The Collaborators,” by Anne Applebaum
The New York Times Magazine for “The Kitchen Is Closed,” by Gabrielle Hamilton
The New Yorker for “The Trayvon Generation,” by Elizabeth Alexander
The New Yorker for “Homecoming,” by Hilton Als
Vanity Fair for “Witness and Respair,” by Jesmyn Ward
Columns and Commentary
The Atlantic for three columns by Anne Applebaum: “This Is How Reaganism and Thatcherism End,” “Venezuela Is the Eerie Endgame of Modern Politics” and “The Coronavirus Called America’s Bluff”
The Economist for three “Obituary” columns by Ann Wroe: “The Man Who Knew: Li Wenliang Died on February 7th,” “Diva Dissenter: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Died on September 18th,” and “The Watchful Scribbler: John le Carré Died on December 12th”
The New Yorker for three columns by Jelani Cobb: “The Death of George Floyd, in Context,” “How Freedom Came” and “Violent Winds”
The Paris Review for three “Detroit Archives” columns by Aisha Sabatini Sloan: “Ladies of the Good Dead,” “On Immolation” and “On Doulas”
Texas Highways for three articles from “Open Road”: “In the Valley of Mirrors,” by Antonio Ruiz-Camacho, “A Place Before Words,” by ire’ne lara silva, and “The Desert Reclaims Everything,” by Roberto José Andrade Franco
Public Interest
The Atlantic for three articles by Ed Yong: “How the Pandemic Will End,” “Long-Haulers Are Redefining COVID-19” and “Anatomy of an American Failure”
High Country News With the Pulitzer Center and Fund for Investigative Journalism for “Land-Grab Universities,” by Robert Lee and Tristan Ahtone
The New Yorker for “Punishment by Pandemic,” by Rachel Aviv
ProPublica for two articles by Lizzie Presser: “The Black American Amputation Epidemic” and “Tethered to the Machine”
Reveal From the Center for Investigative Reporting for a two-article series: “The Disappeared,” by Aura Bogado, and “U.S. Detained Migrant Children for Far Longer Than Previously Known,” co-published by the Los Angeles Times, by Aura Bogado and Melissa Lewis
ASME Award for Coverage of Race in America
The American Scholar for “The Patriot Slave,” by Farah Peterson
ESPN.com for three articles by Howard Bryant: “Why It Matters That Roger Goodell Didn’t Say Colin Kaepernick’s Name,” “The Exile of Oakland A’s Bruce Maxwell and the Birth of MLB’s Black Player Movement” and “The Reality of Black Pain Is Breaking American Sports’ Status Quo”
ProPublica for “How COVID-19 Hollowed Out a Generation of Young Black Men,” by Akilah Johnson and Nina Martin, and “Black Men Have the Shortest Lifespans of Any Americans,” produced by Nadia Sussman and Joe Singer
TIME for “Is This a Model for Reparations in the U.S.?,” by Victor Luckerson
Vanity Fair for “The Great Fire: A Special Issue,” Guest Edited by Ta-Nehisi CoatesASME
Award for Fiction
WINNER
Harper’s Magazine for “The Whale Mother,” by Susan Choi, “Terrace Story,” by Hilary Leichter, and “New Poets,” by Michael Deagler
FINALISTS
American Short Fiction for “The Electric Slide,” by Ted Thompson, “The Last Days of Rodney” by Tracey Rose Peyton, and “Spare the Rod,” by Rickey Fayne
Conjunctions for “Yonder Shines the Big Red Moon Over the Devil’s Lost Playground,” by Brandon Hobson, “The Owl Count,” by Elizabeth Hand, and “The Moon Fairy,” by Sofia Samatar
Oxford American for “Cane Creek,” by Ben Fountain, “A Search,” by Jayne Anne Phillips, and “Bitch Baby,” by Halle Hill
The Paris Review for “Let’s Play Dead,” by Senaa Ahmad, “Good Boy,” by Eloghosa Osunde, and “Violets,” by Bud Smith
ASME NEXT Awards for Journalists Under 30
The ASME NEXT Awards were established in 2016 to support the development of print and digital media by honoring magazine journalists of extraordinary promise.
ASME NEXT Awards 2021 Recipients
Maxine Builder, Deputy Editor, The Strategist, New York
Nominated by Alexis Swerdloff, Editor, The Strategist, New York
Mamadi Doumbouya, Photographer, The New York Times Magazine
Nominated by Jake Silverstein, Editor in Chief, The New York Times Magazine
Andrea González-Ramírez, Senior Writer, GEN
Nominated by Brendan Vaughan, Editor in Chief, GEN
Morgan Jerkins, Senior Editor, ZORA
Nominated by Vanessa De Luca, Editor in Chief, ZORA
Robinson Meyer, Staff Writer, The Atlantic
Nominated by Jeffrey Goldberg, Editor in Chief, The Atlantic
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About ASME
The American Society of Magazine Editors is the principal organization for the editorial leaders of magazines and websites published in the United States. Founded in 1963, ASME strives to safeguard the First Amendment, support the development of journalism and defend the editorial integrity of print and digital publications. ASME sponsors the National Magazine Awards for Print and Digital Media in association with the Columbia Journalism School, conducts training programs for reporters and editors and publishes the ASME Guidelines for Editors and Publishers.
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