LDI eMagazine Wins National Journalism Award

LDI Editor of Digital Publications Hoag Levins and the LDI Health Economist eMagazine have won first prize for Best Health Policy Reporting in a small magazine in 2012 from the national Association of Health Care Journalists (AHCJ).

The honored article — “The Automated External Defibrillator: Medical Marvel But Measurement Mystery” — details the comprehensive lack of scientific data available about the placement, use, efficiency, and health outcomes of public AEDs across the country.

Levins is an award-winning former investigative journalist who spent 40 years as a reporter and editor in newspapers, magazines, radio and digital media companies in Philadelphia, Manhattan and Washington, D.C. before coming to Penn.

Largest Health Journalists Organization
The 2012 awards, announced by AHCJ this week, recognize the best health reporting in 12 categories. AHCJ is a national organization of more than 1,300 working health care journalists in mainstream magazines, newspapers, radio, TV and web media sites.

The organization’s creation in 1997 was sponsored by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation and designed to create a professional society focused on improving the accuracy, integrity and accountability of news reporting about all aspects of the United States Healthcare system.

Credential of judges
AHCJ launched the awards program amid growing concern that too many journalism awards are sponsored by special interest groups that seek to sway media coverage. No health care companies or agencies fund AHCJ’s awards program. Contest entries are screened and judged by more than 45 working journalists or journalism professors.

The awards will be presented during a luncheon March 16 at AHCJ’s annual conference in Boston. First-place winners will receive $500 plus registration and hotel accommodations at the conference. Winners also will speak on conference panels about their work.