International Biz Times’ Sirota wins Izzy award

International Business Times senior editor David Sirota has won the seventh annual Izzy Award, presented by the Park Center for Independent Media at Ithaca College.

The award recognizes outstanding achievement in independent media and journalism. The Izzy Award is named in memory of the late I.F. “Izzy” Stone, the dissident journalist who launched I.F. Stone’s Weekly in 1953 and challenged McCarthyism, the Vietnam War, racial injustice and government deceit.

Sirota published dozens of articles in 2014 on corruption in the country’s $3 trillion pension system. These abuses hurt taxpayers and government employees while rewarding Wall Street firms that fatten politicians’ campaign coffers.

His reporting on this rarely examined topic – first for PandoDaily and later for International Business Times – shed a critical spotlight on powerful officials of both major parties (from Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie). The result: mainstream media attention, official investigations, passage of legislation and changes in government practices.

“David has made International Business Times essential reading for anyone concerned about Wall Street’s new focus on tapping into public retirement savings,” said Peter S. Goodman, global editor in chief of International Business Times, in a statement. “He is one of the most formidable diggers I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with, and these prizes are well-earned affirmation of his value to the public interest.”