Goldsmith Prize finalists include biz journalism work

Finalists for the Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting have been announced by the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and include three business journalism stories out of the six finalists.

The finalists with business angles include:

1. Marshall Allen and Alex Richards of the Las Vegas Sun for “Do No Harm: Hospital Care in Las Vegas”

After a two-year investigation, including the review of 2.9 million records, the Sun’s five-part series identifies the preventable infections and injuries taking place in Las Vegas hospitals. Allen and Richards set out to impose transparency on Las Vegas hospitals so they will be held accountable. Their findings resulted in consumers having access to quality-of-care data that will help them make smart decisions.

2.  Laura Sullivan and Steven Drummond of National Public Radio for “Behind the Bail Bond System”

A three-part series examining bail in the United States, National Public Radio’s Laura Sullivan has been exploring the powerful bail industry and found that it hurts defendants, their victims and taxpayers. NPR’s reporting has been cited in county commission meetings in Florida and in the Statehouses in Virginia, Florida and North Carolina.

3.  Jesse Eisinger and Jake Bernstein of ProPublica; Adam Davidson of Planet Money, National Public Radio; and Ira Glass and Alex Blumberg, This American Life, Chicago Public Radio, for “Betting Against the American Dream – The Wall Street Money Machine”

ProPublica, in collaboration with NPR’s Planet Money and Chicago Public Radio’s This American Life, revealed how the recession of 2008 was significantly deepened by the machinations of Merrill Lynch, Citibank and Magnetar, a little-known hedge fund. As a result, the SEC is investigating deals referenced in the series and it influenced new rules being implemented from the financial reform bill.

The winner of the Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting, which carries a cash award of $25,000, will be announced at an awards ceremony on March 7.

See all of the finalists here.