Giving Compass' Take:
- Columbia Journalism School and the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University present the winners of the 2026 J. Anthony Lukas Prize Project Awards.
- How might you support the development of trustworthy, resilient local journalism infrastructure in your region or community?
- Search for a nonprofit focused on media and journalism.
- Access more nonprofit data, advanced filters, and comparison tools when you upgrade to Giving Compass Pro.
What is Giving Compass?
We connect donors to learning resources and ways to support community-led solutions. Learn more about us.
Columbia Journalism School and the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University are pleased to announce the four winners and two finalists of the 2026 J. Anthony Lukas Prize Project. The Lukas Prizes, established in 1998 and consisting of the J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Awards, the J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize, and the Mark Lynton History Prize, honor the best in American nonfiction book writing.
The winners were chosen from 473 entries and selected by three teams of judges from across journalism, publishing, and academia.
Winners and Finalists of the 2026 Lukas Prizes
J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award Winners
- danah boyd, Data Are Made, Not Found: A Story of Politics, Power, and the Civil Servants Who Saved the U.S. Census (University of Chicago Press)
- Karim Zidan, In the Shadow of the Cage (One Signal)
J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize
- Winner: Jeff Hobbs, Seeking Shelter: A Working Mother, Her Children, and a Story of Homelessness in America (Scribner)
- Finalist: Rich Benjamin, Talk to Me: Lessons from a Family Forged by History (Pantheon)
Mark Lynton History Prize
- Winner: William Dalrymple, The Golden Road: How Ancient India Transformed the World (Bloomsbury)
- Finalist: Siddharth Kara, The Zorg: A Tale of Greed and Murder That Inspired the Abolition of Slavery (St. Martin’s Press)
About the Prizes
Established in 1998, the Lukas Prize Project honors the best in American nonfiction book writing. Co-administered by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard, and sponsored by the family of the late Mark Lynton, a historian and senior executive at the firm Hunter Douglas in the Netherlands, the Lukas Prize Project presents four awards annually in three categories.
J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Awards (Two $25,000 Prizes)
The J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Awards are given annually to aid in the completion of significant works of nonfiction on American topics of political or social concern. Judges: Krithika Varagur (chair), Walter Harrington, and Erroll McDonald.
Read the full article about the 2026 J. Anthony Lukas Prize Project Awards at Nieman Foundation at Harvard.