(May 15, 2015) More than 250 journalists were honored at the Excellence in Journalism annual awards banquet last night. Andrea Sahouri of Detroit Free Press was named 2025 Young Journalist of the Year; Gus Burns and Cole Waterman of The Saginaw News / MLive received the Sojourner Truth Award in Reporting on Racial Justice
DETROIT (May 14, 2025) – The Society of Professional Journalists – Detroit Chapter (SPJ Detroit) announced Ron French and Robin Erb of Bridge Michigan as its 2025 Journalists of the Year.
French helped launch Bridge Michigan in 2011 and now reports on a variety of subjects across the state. Erb, who also works at Bridge Michigan, leads coverage for its “Michigan Health Watch.” Together, their reporting has brought attention to the state’s lax oversight of opioid settlement fund spending, as well as examining worker shortages in health care that hobbled the state’s economy and put lives in danger.
French and Erb were two of more than 250 awardees announced Wednesday night by SPJ Detroit at its Excellence in Journalism banquet at the San Marino Club in Troy, Michigan.
The 2025 Young Journalist of the Year is Andrea Sahouri, who covers criminal justice for the Detroit Free Press and has won numerous awards since joining the paper in June 2022, including the 2024 Wade H. McCree Advancement of Justice Award and a SPJ Detroit 2023 Excellence in Journalism Award – First Place in Racial Justice Reporting.
Other Finalists for Journalist of the Year were:
Steve Neavling, Detroit Metro Times
Kristen Jordan Shamus, Detroit Free Press
… and Young Journalist of the Year:
Malachi Barrett, BridgeDetroit
Adam Yahya Rayes, Michigan Public
Gus Burns and Cole Waterman of The Saginaw News / MLive received the Sojourner Truth Award in Reporting on Racial Justice, which honors excellence in journalism covering this crucial topic. The pair was recognized for coverage on how the deployment of Michigan State Police to financially struggling towns led to incidents of alleged misconduct.
Throughout the night, SPJ Detroit presented awards in 108 categories, across all news media platforms.
Click here for a complete list of winners.
In addition, three of metro Detroit’s most respected journalists – Elias Gutiérrez, Sam Logan Jr. and Devin Scillian – were selected by the SPJ Detroit board of directors to receive this year’s Lifetime Achievement Awards.
The three recipients of the chapter’s Lawrence A. Laurain Scholarships are Nia Harris of Wayne State University, Theo Scheer of Michigan State University and Jada Vasser also of Michigan State University.
“SPJ Detroit congratulates Ron French, Robin Erb, Andrea Sahouri, Elias Gutiérrez, Sam Logan Jr. and Devin Scillian and all those who were recognized at our annual awards ceremony,” said Marty Fischhoff, SPJ Detroit chapter president. “Detroit is lucky to have these incredible journalists. And, of course, we are proud to honor them for their outstanding work.
“We were joined last night by more than 230 journalists from across the state, representing newsrooms large and small as well as every medium. It was the largest turnout that anyone involved with the chapter can remember. It was a remarkable testament to the health and vitality of journalism in Michigan.”
The Journalist of the Year and Young Journalist of the Year were selected by a jury of veteran local journalists, and the Excellence in Journalism awards were judged by a jury of veteran journalists from a a chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists outside of Michigan.
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