Phil Stewart wins courage in journalism award for Pentagon coverage

Stewart was the first Reuters correspondent to win the award, together with Helene Cooper of the New York Times and Tara Copp of the Washington Post.

They were all honoured for their “tenacity and perseverance” in covering the U.S. Defence Department.

The citation said they were “longtime chroniclers of the Pentagon who continue to deliver exceptional reporting through steadfast dedication, resourcefulness, and unyielding persistence.”

The prize is awarded by Colby College in Waterville, Maine to commemorate Elijah Parish Lovejoy, the 1826 valedictorian at Colby, and a crusading abolitionist editor murdered by a mob in Illinois in 1837 for his impassioned anti-slavery editorials.

“The public’s right to know about the nation’s security strategy and actions has long been in tension with the government’s expectations around secrecy with respect to security planning and actions,” said Colby President David A. Greene.   

“That long-simmering tension has moved to a boiling point in recent years, with reporters being banned from the Pentagon at a time when the country is embroiled in conflicts around the globe. The Lovejoy Award for 2026 recognizes those journalists who have navigated these challenges with courage and ingenuity to ensure that government accountability to the nation’s citizens is not compromised at times of war and armed conflict,” he added.

Stewart said: “It is a humbling and tremendous honour to receive this recognition. I see covering conflict as part of a long American tradition in journalism that inherently acknowledges that pursuing the truth can come with some degree of risk. “Elijah Parish Lovejoy inspires those of us who believe in press freedom.”