SAN DIEGO, CA | The San Diego Press Club is issuing an important correction to the Best of Show Podcast awards presented at the 53rd Annual Excellence in Journalism Awards.
Following a review of the official judging results, we discovered that two entries had been selected by the judge for Best of Show honors in the Podcast category. Unfortunately, an administrative oversight resulted in only one recipient being announced during the awards ceremony, and that recipient was incorrectly associated with the other winner’s work.
During the ceremony, KOGO News Radio’s Phil Farrar was recognized for “One of Their Own,” a podcast produced by KPBS journalist Katie Hyson. Farrar’s winning entry was, in fact, “North Park: Historic to Hip.”
To be absolutely clear, both journalists earned Best of Show honors. Neither award was given in error. The mistake was entirely in how the results were interpreted, announced, and presented.
The San Diego Press Club sincerely apologizes to Katie Hyson, Phil Farrar, KPBS, and KOGO News Radio for this error.
As an organization dedicated to recognizing excellence in journalism, we understand that accuracy matters, particularly when celebrating the work and achievements of our colleagues. We fell short of that standard, and we take full responsibility.
The official 2026 Best of Show Podcast honorees are:
Katie Hyson | KPBS
“One of Their Own”
Category: Podcast
Judges’ Comments:
“Excellent writing and storytelling. It uses the less-than-clear circumstances to dive into important topics.”
Phil Farrar | KOGO News Radio
“North Park: Historic to Hip”
Category: Series
Both entries were independently recognized for their excellence, and both journalists deserve the full acknowledgment and celebration that comes with this distinction.
“We owe our award recipients more than recognition. We owe them accuracy, fairness, and the confidence that their work is being honored appropriately,” said Albert Fulcher, executive director of the San Diego Press Club. “We regret this oversight, take responsibility for correcting it, and are reviewing our awards verification procedures to help prevent similar errors in the future.”
Please check out the winners here:
Katie Hyson – https://www.linkedin.com/in/katiehyson23/
Phil Farrar – https://www.linkedin.com/in/philfarrartv/
