On July 11, 2011, the National Press Club announced Inside the Pentagon Chief Editor Christopher J. Castelli had been awarded the Michael A. Dornheim Award for reporting on the Defense Department's failure to put required cockpit voice recorders on V-22 Ospreys. His Dec. 23, 2010, scoop had a major impact: Congress pursued the matter and the military finally committed to funding the requirement. The impact is clear in the follow-up stories he published this year.
- Failure To Field Cockpit Voice Recorders Deals Blow To V-22 Crash Probe
- McKeon Probes DOD Failure To Field V-22 Cockpit Voice Recorders
- Marines Agree To Fund V-22 Cockpit Voice Recorders Required By Law
On June 14, 2011, the Washington, DC, chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists awarded Inside the Pentagon Associate Editor Jordana Mishory third place in the Newsletter category for a series of stories she wrote in 2010 on the Defense Department's auditing problems:
- DOD: First Audit Of Military Service To Wrap Up This Calendar Year
- Unable To Meet Deadline For First Military Audit, DOD Mulls Options
- Marine Corps Tightens Internal Controls, Awaits Auditors' Evaluation
- CFO Council, DOD Launch Studies To Find Cost-Effective Audit Options
- Marine Corps Faces 'Material Weaknesses,' Violated Antideficiency Act
Past Awards: 2010
The National Press Club has awarded its prize for newsletter journalism to Inside the Pentagon Chief Editor Christopher J. Castelli for his scoop on the Navy's decision to kill the multibillion-dollar CG(X) cruiser program and instead buy ships of an existing design. The story, first published in Inside the Navy in 2009, was part of a series that broke news about the draft version of the Navy's 30-year shipbuilding plan:
- Draft Shipbuilding Report Reveals Navy is Killing CG(X) Cruiser Program
- Navy Confronts $80 Billion Cost Of New Ballistic Missile Submarines
- Report: Sub Cuts Will 'Exacerbate' Problem Of Meeting COCOM Needs
Past Awards: 2009
Inside the Army Managing Editor Marjorie Censer has been honored by the DC Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists for a story on Army plans to strip billions of dollars from its legacy vehicle accounts to fund the Future Combat Systems program.
Marjorie was awarded first place in the Washington newsletter reporting category.
Here's the full story:
Funneling Resources To FCS, Army POM Strips Vehicle Program Funding
Past Awards: 2008
Inside the Pentagon chief editor Christopher J. Castelli has been honored by Society of Professional Journalists for three stories published in Inside the Navy in 2007.
The stories won first place in the Washington newsletter reporting category of the Society’s SPJ Dateline awards.
- V-22 Parts Replaced Due To 'Serious Risk' Of 'Catastrophic' Mishaps
- With Iraq Mission Looming, Marines Eye V-22 Maintenance Problems
- Process For Handling Marines' Urgent Needs Deemed Ineffective
Also, the National Press Club gave Chris Honorable Mention for its Newsletter Journalism Award, “Best Exclusive Story” category, for a story on the V-22 Osprey program published June 25, 2007, in the pages of Inside the Navy.
V-22 Parts Replaced Due To 'Serious Risk' Of 'Catastrophic' Mishaps
Past Awards: 2007
Inside the Pentagon Senior Correspondent Elaine Grossman has won three separate prizes for her Dec. 7, 2006, article, “U.S. Officers in Iraq: Insurgents are Repeatedly Captured And Released.”
The three are as follows:
- National Press Club 2007 Journalism Awards: 1st Place, Newsletter Journalism -- Best Analytical or Interpretive Reporting Piece.
- Society of Professional Journalists, Washington DC Chapter, 2007 Dateline Awards: 1st place, Newsletters.
- Specialized Information Publishers Foundation, 2007 Editorial and Marketing Awards: 1st place, Best Investigative Reporting.
Inside the Navy Chief Editor Chris Castelli has won honorable mention in the “Best Exclusive Story” category in the National Press Club's newsletter journalism contest. His winning story, “Poor Reliability Puts Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle in Jeopardy,” was published Oct. 2, 2006.
Past Awards: 2006
The Society of Professional Journalists has awarded Elaine Grossman the top prize in its competition for "Best Coverage of a Washington-Based Story Online" in 2005.
Elaine's story, first published on InsideDefense.com on Nov. 17, 2005, describes a rift between top defense officials over U.S. military relations with China.
Riling Hawks, A Top U.S. Commander Seeks Fresh Military Tack On China
Second place in the same category went to InsideDefense.com's Jason Sherman for a series of stories on the Quadrennial Defense Review.
- In Nod to Top Brass, Rumsfeld Shifts QDR's Direction; Focus on Terrorism, WMD Modified
- Rumsfeld Officially Kicks Off 2005 QDR, Issues New 'National Defense Strategy'
- Pentagon's First Post-9/11 Construct Could Revamp Shape, Size of U.S. Forces
- DOD To Slash $32 Billion From Service Budgets; More Cuts May Follow
In a separate category -- "Newsletter - Washington Reporting" - the Society awarded second-place honors to Inside the Navy and its chief editor, Christopher Castelli, who wrote a series of stories on the war on terrorism, the challenge of manning the U.S. military with enough special operations troops, and the Pentagon's internal decisions about major weapons programs deemed either necessary or unnecessary for the fight.
- General: 'War On Terror' Is 'Inaccurate' Label For War On Insurgency
- Shortage of Midgrade Officers Emerges in Navy's Special Forces
- Defense Department Poised To Kill JSF's Alternate Engine Program
- Naval Testers Back MV-22, But DOD To Decide Suitability, Effectiveness
- Pentagon Cuts $1.1 Billion From Marine Corps' Osprey Program
(First place in the same category went to Inside EPA, a sister publication.
Also this year, the Newsletter & Electronic Publishers Foundation awarded third place in the "Best Spot News or Exclusive Single News" category in 2005. Jason's story broke the news of major Pentagon spending cuts early in the year.
Pentagon Slashes $30 Billion From Major Navy, Air Force, Missile Defense Programs
Past Awards: 2005
The National Press Club has awarded its top prize for analytical or interpretive newsletter journalism to Elaine M. Grossman, senior correspondent for Inside the Pentagon.
The award honors a story from the March 18, 2004, issue: “Decision to Hasten Ground Attack Into Iraq Presented New Risks.”
It's a lengthy, thorough look at the debate between air- and land-combat generals over how and when to start the war against Iraq in 2003, and it was based largely on reporting Elaine did during her six-week stint embedded with U.S. forces at Camp Doha, Kuwait.
InsideDefense.com has been honored by the Washington, DC, chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists with a second-place award for online Washington reporting. The article on retired Army Gen. Wesley Clark's controversial military record, published the day he announced his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination, was written by Inside the Pentagon Senior Correspondent Elaine M. Grossman.
For a series of four articles on presidential and military aviation, Inside the Navy won third place in the Newsletter - Washington Reporting category of the Dateline Awards, presented by the Washington, DC, chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. The articles were written by Inside the Navy Chief Editor Christopher J. Castelli.
- Card Has Pentagon Accelerate Plan To Replace Bush's Helicopters
Jan. 13, 2003 - Unexpected Loss Of Small Door In Flight Prompts V-22 Landing
Aug. 25, 2003 - Windscreen Cracks, Hydraulic Failure Occur During V-22 Testing
Sept. 29, 2003 - Sikorsky And Lockheed To Face Off In White House Helo Contest
Sept. 1, 2003
Inside the Navy has been honored by the Society of American Business Editors and Writers for two articles by Chief Editor Christopher J. Castelli. Inside the Navy was the sole honoree in the “weeklies” category of SABEW’s “Best in Business Breaking News” competition.
- Shipbuilding Giants May Swap LPD-17 And DDG-51 Work Worth Billions
- Responding To Lott, DOD Starts Funding LHD-9 And One More DDG-51
Past Awards: 2002
Inside the Pentagon took top honors in the 2002 Newsletter & Electronic Publishers Foundation's 23rd Newsletter Journalism Awards Competition. Senior Correspondent Elaine M. Grossman's story on the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, "U.S. Air Force Flies Combat Patrols Over Dozens Of American Cities," was awarded first place in the best spot-news or exclusive single-news category.
Also in 2002, Inside the Navy won honors from the National Press Club and NEPF for coverage of the V-22 Osprey program, authored by Chief Editor Christopher J. Castelli. The lead story in a series, "ALDRIDGE GIVES NOD TO PROCEED WITH V-22 PROGRAM IMPROVEMENTS," won honorable mention in the National Press Club's "best exclusive story" newsletter journalism competition. The series won third place in NEPF's "best investigative reporting" category.
Inside the Pentagon also won honorable mention in the 2002 NEPF investigative reporting category for a feature-length story by Elaine M. Grossman, "Origins Of Greeneville Cruise: How Civilians Got A Ride On Sub."
Past Awards: 2001
Inside the Pentagon won first place in the best investigative reporting category of the 2001 NEPF awards for a story on the anthrax vaccine program.
In 2001, a Jan. 13, 2000 story from Inside the Pentagon, "Pre-Y2K Problems Undercut Operation Of U.S. Satellite Imagery Network," was awarded honorable mention by the National Press Club in its newsletter journalism competition.