Koby Levin of Outlier Media Named Journalist of the Year by the SPJ Detroit

More than 275 journalists honored at the Excellence in Journalism awards banquet;
Briana Rice of Outlier Media named Young Journalist of the Year;
Stephen Henderson, Bill McGraw and Alicia Nails honored with Lifetime Achievement Awards.

Levin, a housing reporter at Outlier Media, has focused on the intersection of housing insecurity, policy and the communities most affected by Detroit’s changing real estate landscape. His reporting shed light on critical issues facing Detroit residents and demonstrated the kind of impactful, community-centered journalism that SPJ Detroit seeks to recognize.

Levin was one of more than 275 awardees announced Wednesday night by SPJ Detroit at its Excellence in Journalism banquet at the San Marino Club in Troy, Michigan.

Briana Rice was named Young Journalist of the Year. Rice, a reporter at Outlier Media, highlighted housing and community issues affecting Detroit residents in her work. Her reporting reflected a commitment to accountability journalism and amplifying underrepresented voices in the region.

Finalists for Journalist of the Year were:

• John Carlisle and Ryan Garza, Detroit Free Press
• Bill Kubota, Detroit PBS

Finalists for Young Journalist of the Year were:

• Ronia Cabansag, Michigan Public
• Isabel Lohman, Bridge Michigan

• Stephen Henderson – An award-winning journalist, author and broadcaster whose work is rooted in Detroit and shaped by a deep commitment to public-interest reporting and civic life. A native Detroiter, he is the founder of BridgeDetroit. A winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary, he has received more than two dozen national honors for his writing and editing, including recognition as Journalist of the Year by the National Association of Black Journalists.
• Bill McGraw – A journalist for more than 50 years in Detroit, joined the Detroit Free Press staff in 1977, serving as reporter, sportswriter, columnist, foreign correspondent and deputy metro editor. He created two best-selling books about the city, the “Detroit Almanac” and “The Quotations of Mayor Coleman Young,” and co-founded Deadline Detroit. His writing has appeared in such publications as The New York Times, Washington Post and Bridge Michigan.
• Alicia Nails – The director of Wayne State University’s Journalism Institute for Media Diversity. She is an Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist with more than 40 years of experience in television, radio and print/electronic media. She leads Wayne Journalism’s annual Spirit of Diversity event, which has honored national figures in the profession for some 40 years.

SPJ Detroit also named the recipients of its Larry Laurain scholarships, given annually to college students with an expressed interest in journalism.

The Journalist of the Year, Young Journalist of the Year and Excellence in Journalism award winners were selected by panels of veteran journalists.

“SPJ Detroit congratulates Koby Levin, Briana Rice, Stephen Henderson, Bill McGraw, Alicia Nails and all those who were recognized,” said Marty Fischhoff, SPJ Detroit chapter president. “Detroit is lucky to have these incredible journalists. And, of course, we are proud to honor them.”