March 15th, 2011

CNN reveals the winners of the first-ever CNN iReport Awards

CNN.com’s participation director, Lila King, revealed the winners of the inaugural iReport Awards this morning at the CNN Grill at the 2011 South by Southwest Conference and Festivals.

A team of producers selected 30 finalists from the more than 150,000 iReport submissions  received in 2010. The iReport Awards honored some of the best in participatory journalism from 2010.

Winners were announced in the following categories:

Breaking News Coverage:
Michael Roberts – Early images of Gulfwater Horizon fire

Original Reporting:
Percy von Lipinski – Bison as pet

Compelling Imagery (Photos or Video):
Mugur Vărzariu –  Abandon Valley

Commentary:
James Amerson – Dear Gulf, I’ll miss you

Personal Story:
Faithe Chu – My escape from Vietnam

Interview:
Tristan Macaraeg – 16-year-old interviews classmate on living in foster care

Community Choice:
Samantha Bolton

iReport Spirit Awards:
Janie Lambert
Julio Ortiz-Teissonniere
Omékongo Dibinga
Shari Atukorala
Sherbien Dacalanio

For more information: http://CNNiReport.com/Awards